Salt ingestion
Salt ingestion is an uncommon cause of hypernatraemia, but 0.75 – 3g/kg can be potentially fatal. One tablespoon of salt weighs about 15 g. Link
LP RBC counts in suspected SAH
How the LP RBC counts may influence the diagnosis of SAH has been added following a recent study in Academic Emergency Medicine. Link
Beta blockers vs calcium channel antagonists for AFib
Despite diltiazem having a theorretical advantage of causing less hypotension, a retrospective study in Academic Emergency Medicine did not show any signfiicant differences in outcomes in patients with AFib treated with dilatiazem, verpapamil or metoprolol. Link
Suxamethonium vs rocuronium – which is better?
Great to see that there has been some response to the poll of the preferred muscle relaxant used for intubation in the ED. At this point it appears to be a 2 horse race between suxamethonium and rocuronium. Get your vote in soon as the poll will be closing in the next few days. Feel free … Read more
BMI calculator operating
The BMI calculator is functioning properly again. Link
The new look website is here!
The upgrade to the new website is now (almost) complete. All areas appear to be functioning well, however there still are a few formatting issues that should be resolved over the next few days. In particular, the bullets on some lists seem to want to have different sizes, and some hyperlinks want to underline themselves – but … Read more
Extracorporeal elimination of toxic compounds
The Extracorporeal methods of drug elimination page in the Toxicology section has had a major update following the recent symposium on the subject in Copenhagen.
Seizure assessment and management
The pages relating to seizures in the Neurological Disorders section have been revised and restructured to aid in navigation.
Salicylate toxicity
The Salicylates page in the Toxicology section has been updated.
Metformin toxicity
The Oral hypoglycaemic Agents page in the Endocrinology section has been updated with particular reference to the metformin toxicity.
Pacemaker artefact
An ECG demonstrating a pacemaker artefact has been added to the Electrocardiography page in the Clinical Skills section.
Posterior shoulder dislocation
2 additional radiographic series of posterior shoulder joint dislocation have been added to the Glenohumeral Joint Dislocation page in the Bone and Joint Disorders section.
Shoulder dislocation
The Glenohumeral Joint Dislocation page has been significantly revised and a new page called Anterior Shoulder Dislocation Management has been added to the Bone and Joint Disorders section to aid navigation.
Coarse crackles
A short audio clip of coarse crackles on lung auscultation has been added to the Respiratory Examination page in the Respiratory Disorders section.
Paediatric orthopaedic conditions
A series of links from the Limping Child page in the Paediatrics section to the various pages containing information about the most common causes have been added to aid in navigation.
Sepsis tips
Fever and rigors = septicaemia. Cultures, antibiotics and admission are required. Don't attribute "aches and pains" to viral illness – sepsis causes the same symptoms. Thrombocytopenia in the febrile patient should always be considered to be due to sepsis. Lymphopenia is more commonly due to bacteraemia in febrile ED patients than viral illness. Don't underestimate … Read more
Mitral regurgitation murmur
A short audio track demonstrating the auscultatory features of Mitral Regurgitation has been added to the Other Valve Lesions page in the Cardiovascular Disorders section.
Pseudo-pneumothorax
A CXR demonstrating a skin-plate artefact closely mimicking a pneumothorax has been added to the Assessment of Pneumothorax page in the Respiratory Disorders section.Link
HOCM
An ECG demonstrating some of the features of HOCM has been added to the Cardiomyopathies page in the Cardiovascular Disorders section.
SVT with RBBB
An ECG demonstrating the features of SVT in the presence of RBBB has been added to the Ventricular Tachycardia page (as a differential diagnosis) in the Resuscitation section.