Feature Channels: Emergency Medicine

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Wire-bristle grill brushes are used frequently for cleaning food residue from grill grates, but loose bristles can fall off the brush during cleaning and end up in the grilled food. If consumed, wire bristles can lead to injuries in the mouth, throat and tonsils. An otolaryngologist at MU Health Care would like to remind the public that these injuries can be prevented.

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By improving visualization of weather data and information, an Emergency Manager can review the various data sources more efficiently, and HV-X gives emergency managers more tools and capabilities to support their recommendations and decision making.

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Adolescent drivers with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have a 36 percent higher crash risk than other newly licensed teens. Although elevated, this risk is far lower than previous reports of being four times higher. This is the first large-scale study to provide detailed information on crash risk of adolescents with ADHD compared to other newly licensed young drivers.

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Michigan Medicine researchers sought to determine how much certain factors affect a patient’s decision to have elective diagnostic tests in the emergency department.

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Human/snake encounters will increase with the start of summer. UAB experts offer tips on avoiding snakebite, or dealing with one if bitten.

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The University of Chicago Medicine has set Jan. 8, 2018, for the opening of its expanded emergency department and May 1, 2018, for the launch of Level 1 adult trauma services, pending approval by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

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Medical emergencies cause a high number of vehicle crashes. University of Michigan researchers have teamed up with Toyota to examine whether new vehicle technology could predict — and potentially prevent — such scenarios.

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A recent study from the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine shows that, while there has been a decrease in the number of children injured by lawn mowers over the last few decades, this cause of serious injury continues to be a concern.

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In an effort to reduce the number of people who die needlessly from sudden cardiac arrest each year, NewYork-Presbyterian and the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute have launched the #HandsOnlyCPR campaign, an ambitious community awareness, education and activation effort with a simple, but powerful message: Everyone Can Save a Life.

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A vibrating device, used with a cold pack, relieves a child’s pain while emergency department caregivers insert an intravenous catheter, equally as well as the currently used anesthetic, topical lidocaine. The device can be used quickly, unlike lidocaine, which requires 30 minutes to fully take effect.

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A stroke is a "brain attack" and occurs when blood supply to the brain is cut off. According to Kenneth A. Levin, M.D., Medical Director, The Valley Hospital Stroke Center, “Most strokes are caused by a blood clot that has built up on the wall of a brain artery or one that has traveled there from another part of the body (an embolic stroke or ischemic stroke). Other strokes are caused by a ruptured blood vessel in or near the brain (aneurysm), which results in bleeding within or over the surface of the brain (hemorrhagic stroke).” Stroke is the fifth leading killer and the number-one cause of disability in the United States.

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When a child falls ill, receiving the right emergency care at the right time is crucial for recovery. Unfortunately, specialized pediatric emergency rooms can be far away, further delaying diagnosis and treatment in a time of need. To ensure children receive the urgent care they need, regardless of location, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) now offers emergency pediatric telemedicine, connecting patients to physicians on its Somerset campus with pediatric emergency medicine at the Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital (BMSCH) at RWJUH in New Brunswick through a secure, remote network.

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As many as 53 percent of cancer patients’ Emergency Department visits that do not require admission could be avoided with better symptom management and greater availability of outpatient care tailored to their needs, according to a new study from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. This study will be presented at the 2017 American Society for Clinical Oncology meeting on June 5, 2017. It is Abstract #6505 (link here: http://abstracts.asco.org/199/AbstView_199_193735.html).

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An analysis of billing records for more than 12,000 emergency medicine doctors across the United States shows that charges varied widely, but that on average, adult patients are charged 340 percent more than what Medicare pays for services ranging from suturing a wound to interpreting a head CT scan.

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Skull fractures and other head and facial injuries from motorcycle trauma in Michigan have doubled since that state relaxed its motorcycle helmet laws, reports a study in the June issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The new study is one of the first to focus on how helmet laws affect CMF trauma rates.

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Thousands of critical care and pulmonology specialists from across the world gathered this week for the American Thoracic Society International Conference in Washington, D.C., to share research, medical developments and best practices for patient care. Here, we highlight a few standouts.

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Patients in small towns can save thousands of dollars in health care costs by avoiding transfer to a larger facility if their local rural hospital is part of a tele-emergency room network, according to a new study from the University of Iowa.

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In a new study presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference, adult asthma patients treated with bronchial thermoplasty (BT) had fewer severe exacerbations and were able to reduce their ER visits and hospitalizations in the two years following treatment. Approved by the FDA in 2010, BT is a new device-based therapy that uses a series of three radio-frequency treatments to open the airways of adults with severe, persistent asthma whose symptoms are not adequately controlled by inhaled corticosteroids or long-acting beta-agonists.

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A machine-learning algorithm has the capability to identify hospitalized patients at risk for severe sepsis and septic shock using data from electronic health records (EHRs), according to a study presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference. Sepsis is an extreme systemic response to infection, which can be life-threatening in its advanced stages of severe sepsis and septic shock, if left untreated.

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While the number of hospitalizations for COPD in the United States fluctuated within a narrow range between 2005 and 2014, in-hospital deaths decreased substantially during that same time, according to new research presented at the ATS 2017 International Conference.

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The number of motor vehicle fatalities involving children under age 15 varies widely by state, but occurrences are more common in the South, and are most often associated with improperly or unused restraints and crashes on rural roads, a new review of child-related auto fatalities shows.

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Distractions from technology have a detrimental effect on children’s crash risk as pedestrians and drivers.

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Reviewing studies can be a tedious task, but a Michigan Medicine physician explains the importance of staying up to date on medical literature, even outside of one’s primary field of medicine.

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According to a new survey, patients with lung disease report that they are unable to obtain home oxygen equipment that meets their needs thereby forcing them to become isolated. The study was presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

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In a new study that analyzed data from the large French CUB-REA database, high volume intensive care units (ICUs) were found to have lower death rates from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) than low and moderate volume ICUs. The researchers also found that, overall, among the 35 ICUs in the CUB-REA registry, ICU mortality decreased despite an increase in ARDS severity. The study was presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

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According to a new study, patients with sepsis, a life-threatening complication of an infection, had delays approaching one hour in being given antibiotics when seen in emergency rooms that were overcrowded. The study was presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

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A 2015 Institute of Medicine report that highlighted fragmentation among EMS systems in the United States compelled Michigan Medicine researchers to evaluate the quality of EMS oversight in Michigan and explore how EMS systems could work together to improve patient care.

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A new discovery may be the key to stopping shortages of vital blood-clotting cells that can represent the difference between life and death. The finding also could offer big benefits for premature babies.

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Many older adults have fallen outdoors but lack an understanding of the risks for falling and how to prevent them, warranting efforts for outdoor fall prevention, finds a new study by New York University researchers.

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"We need to remind people that these are dangerous machines, and the consequences are devastating."

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The likelihood of a family member or friend stepping in to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a person suffering from a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) at home decreases with the victim’s age, suggests a new study from Penn Medicine that also found low CPR training rates among older Americans. The results were published this week in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

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Creighton University hosts Trauma Symposium: An Interprofessional Focus in Trauma Care, June 16. The event is designed for medical professionals, academics and students who practice or study in the areas of trauma surgery and emergency medicine.

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Research findings to be published about new blood test technology that will greatly reduce errors in labwork and improve care in public health and infectious disease. Press briefing scheduled for May 16, reserve press access to live virtual event now.

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The region’s most comprehensive pediatric program enhances access to care with expanded pediatric emergency expertise.

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Adolescent males of color treated for violent injury and discharged from an urban pediatric emergency department overwhelmingly identified a need for mental health care, according to research from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Violence Intervention Program, published today in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

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According to the American Stroke Association, the number of people 65 and older who were treated for ischemic stroke declined between 2000 and 2010. However, hospitalization rates for those younger than 65 rose.

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Urgent Matters, Philips Blue Jay Consulting, and Schumacher Clinical Partners are now accepting submissions for the 2017 Emergency Care Innovation of the Year Award, to be presented at the American College of Emergency Physicians Scientific Assembly in October.

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Women with elevated levels of a protein in their blood may be at a higher risk of ischemic stroke, according to a study published in the May 10, 2017, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The new research comes in time for Stroke Awareness Month in May.

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In recognition of National Stroke Awareness Month in May, Loyola Medicine physicians are raising awareness of stroke signs and symptoms and educating the public on how to prevent strokes.

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A study conducted by Nationwide Children’s Hospital researchers found that over a 21-year period from 1990 through 2010, an estimated 263,000 children younger than 18 years of age were treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments for cotton tip applicator related ear injuries – that’s about 12,500 annually, or about 34 injuries every day.

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Southern Research is launching a new biosafety training center as the centerpiece of an advanced program called TrainSafe to teach health care workers and laboratory staff how to protect themselves against pathogens responsible for serious infectious diseases.

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Many people have become familiar with the FAST acronym for identifying acute stroke symptoms. But a recently expanded version of the acronym can make it easier for those witnessing an acute stroke to identify it in nearly all cases.

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Researchers found that allocation of rehabilitation services differs by ethnicity, which may help explain why Mexican-Americans have worse outcomes after stroke.

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Flying a stroke specialist by helicopter to a nearby stroke patient for emergency care is feasible, saves money and, most importantly, gets critical care to patients faster than transporting the patient to a hospital first, according to a single-patient, proof-of-concept study by a Johns Hopkins Medicine research team.

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Knowing the signs of becoming drowsy behind the wheel, many of which are similar to distracted and drunk driving, could potentially be lifesaving.

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In observance of Stroke Awareness Month, Hackensack Meridian Health Neuroscience is kicking off a series of informative community events, providing expert advice, tips, screenings, and the latest information about stroke prevention and treatments. The events will take place at locations throughout Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean counties.

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New research from three pediatric trauma centers, published in the American Journal of Critical Care, supports the momentum toward hospital policies that allow family members to stay with their child during resuscitation and trauma care.

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Cardiovascular decompensation is a significant risk after blood loss, even once the person is no longer actively bleeding. Applying a bag of ice to a person’s forehead could help prevent this life-threatening complication while patients are being transported to the hospital.