Frontiers in Emergency Medicine (E-Journal)
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Current Medical Journalism Needs Major Revisions
Medical journalism commenced during early nineteenth century as an impressive adjunct for medical education. It is considered as a platform to share the results of the research studies and to disseminate medical information that could impact the present concept and practice of the medicine field. Medical journalism gained immense attention over the years; however, the present scenario revealed certain limitations.
A rise in the number of researchers, by interest or forcefully, has led to an increase in the journal count, resulting in several fake research articles being published in the journals. This leads to inappropriate research and low quality of journals, where the data appearing in the research articles is not authentic; thus, the journals publishing such articles face several issues while verifying the authenticity of the data provided.
All journals, in particular, the recent ones strive to achieve immense importance in regards to the impact factor, h-index, and similar quality assessments; however, attaining similar scores as that of the well-known journals is impossible. Hence, as a futile effort, the editorial team of the new or latest journals consider adding more references in their articles in order to achieve a higher score; however, certain references from the previously published papers, may decode as a conflict of interest.
Based on an unwritten and unavailable rule, all new journals try to publish papers in same format as publishing in famous journals, and do not dare to deconstruct it. It seems that deconstruction should also be performed by the old journals founded the current style!
In order to avoid the aforementioned issues, the Advanced Journal of Emergency Medicine emerged with the concept of being different, deconstructive, and without any futile competition with the other journals. Accordingly, we consider a large audience with several degrees of medical education to participate in the field of research, make the journal a unique one aim to augment of medical education through medical research charm.
To the best of our knowledge, at present, we do not have appropriate solutions to aforementioned problems. We request the authors, directors, and editorial members of the journals to have a detailed discussion on this topic, and we are ready to publish articles on the topic that is briefly discussed in this article
A 10-year-old Male with Osteogenesis Imperfecta; Zebra Lines
Case presentation: A 10-year-old male who was a known case of osteogenesis imperfecta was referred to our clinic for follow up. He had osteogenesis imperfecta since birth with multiple fractures. He was treated with pamidronate every 3 months. He did not have a new fracture after treatment. Hand radiography showed multiple metaphyseal bands, called zebra lines, parallel to the growth plate.
Learning points: Osteogenesis imperfecta is a congenital disorder due to a mutation in the CoL1A1 or CoL1A2 gene. It is often called brittle bone disease. The incidence of osteogenesis imperfecta is 1 in 10000–20000 birth. These patients are often characterized by multiple fractures with minimal or no trauma, skeletal deformity, and short stature. Radiological findings show generalized osteopenia, skeletal deformity, and bone fractures.
The bisphosphonates are analogs of pyrophosphate that inhibit osteoclast activity. Pamidronate increased bone mineral density, decreased bone fracture rate, decreased pain, and improved the functional ability (3). Radiography findings after treatment with bisphosphonate showed dens metaphyseal lines in the long bones, so-called zebra lines. These lines were parallel to the growth plate. Each line corresponded to one intravenous treatment course. The bone growth rate and the time gap between two treatment courses were determined from the space between two zebra lines
Pain Management in the Emergency Department: a Review Article on Options and Methods
Context: The aim of this review is to recognizing different methods of analgesia for emergency medicine physicians (EMPs) allows them to have various pain relief methods to reduce pain and to be able to use it according to the patient’s condition and to improve the quality of their services. Evidence acquisition: In this review article, the search engines and scientific databases of Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed, Medline, Scopus, and Cochrane for emergency pain management methods were reviewed. Among the findings, high quality articles were eventually selected from 2000 to 2018, and after reviewing them, we have conducted a comprehensive comparison of the usual methods of pain control in the emergency department (ED). Results: For better understanding, the results are reported in to separate subheadings including “Parenteral agents” and “Regional blocks”. Non-opioids analgesics such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and acetaminophen are commonly used in the treatment of acute pain. However, the relief of acute moderate to severe pain usually requires opioid agents. Considering the side effects of systemic drugs and the restrictions on the use of analgesics, especially opioids, regional blocks of pain as part of a multimodal analgesic strategy can be helpful. Conclusion: This study was designed to investigate and identify the disadvantages and advantages of using each drug to be able to make the right choices in different clinical situations for patients while paying attention to the limitations of the use of these analgesic drugs
An Epidemiologic Study on Emergency Department Mortality
Introduction: Epidemiologic evaluation generally starts with recording the raw data regarding mortality, and healthcare managers should have a national plan executed for this purpose. Objective: The present study was planned and performed with the aim of epidemiologically evaluating mortality cases among patients admitted to the emergency department (ED) of a major hospital in Tehran, Iran in order to plan and provide proper equipment for decreasing the mortality of patients. Method: This cross-sectional study was performed in Shohadaye Tajrish Hospital, Tehran, Iran. All cases of mortality, recorded in the ED of the studied hospital from 20 March 2016 until 21 June 2016, were included in the study. A checklist was prepared for gathering data and the clinical profiles of all the considered patients were reviewed. Using this checklist, demographic data, chief complaint, history of underlying disease, pathologic findings of imaging modalities, and cause of death were extracted from the patients’ profiles. Result: Over the mentioned period of time, in total, the data of 8420 admissions to the ED were recorded. Out of these patients, 76 (0.9%) had died, the mean age of whom was 67.66 ± 21.40 years. Based on these findings, among patients who had presented to the ED, 42.1% died due to the complications of heart attack and 13.2% died from complications caused by cancer. Conclusion: Based on the findings of the present study, cardiovascular complications were the most leading cause of mortality in the studied ED and complications resulting from malignancy were in the second place. Trauma and accidents leading to intracranial hemorrhage were in the next places
Radial Head Subluxation: Possible Effective Factors on Time to Re-use the Affected Limb
Introduction: Radial head subluxation (RHS) is a common disorder in children. Although it is not accompanied by any important short- or long-term sequel, it could make the parents worried about. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the possible effective factors that may influence time to use the affected limb. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted prospectively during the years 2014 to 2016. All children under the age of 6 years who visited the emergency department (ED) and were diagnosed as having RHS were eligible. The patients’ baseline information was recorded. After the reduction, the time until the affected arm use returned was recorded. The possible relationship between the baseline data and time to re-use the affected limb was assessed. Results: During the study period, 112 children with a mean age of 30.18 ± 18.18 months were evaluated (53% male). Among the children who visited the ED during the first 4 hours and thereafter, 84% and 60%, respectively, re-used their limb in less than 10 minutes after reduction (p = 0.004). Also, 55% of children less than or equal to 24 months and 89% over the age of 24 months re-used the arm in 10 minutes (p < 0.001). The success rate of the first reduction maneuver was significantly lower in children with a recurrent dislocation (p = 0.001). Conclusion: It is likely that age less than or equal to 24 months and ED visit after 4 hours of the event lead to a longer duration for re-using the affected arm following reduction
Extranodal Natural Killer/T-cell Lymphoma in a Child with a Prior History of Nasal Trauma: a Case Report
Introduction: Facial lesions usually have a benign self-limited prognosis, but in rare cases they have a poor outcome. Extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (ENK/TCL) is a rare aggressive lesion presenting with a midline facial lesion that can easily be misdiagnosed. Diagnosis is often difficult and requires a thorough clinical examination and the use of immunohistochemistry for analysis of biopsies. Such malignancies affecting the head and neck area provide an interesting but difficult diagnosis. The purpose of this article is to report a severe case of ENK/TCL-nasal type in a boy with a previous history of nasal trauma. Case presentation: An 11-year-old boy was referred to the maxillofacial unit of Sulaimany Teaching Hospital, Iraq, with midline facial destruction. The patient stated that about 6 months prior he had fallen down and suffered nasal trauma; 3 months after the trauma, an asymptomatic ulcer appeared and gradually increased in size. Two biopsies were performed with no conclusive results. In the third biopsy, histology showed atypical lymphoid tissue surrounded by intense necrosis. The diagnosis was confirmed by immunohistochemistry. The treatment of choice was chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy. The patient had a satisfactory response but 2 months later during chemotherapy the patient unfortunately died from a pulmonary embolism. Conclusion: Suspicious midline ulcerative lesions in the head and neck region must have ENK/TCL considered in the differential diagnosis and repeated biopsies may be necessary to confirm the diagnosis
The Cost Analysis of Patients with Traffic Traumatic Injuries Presenting to Emergency Department; a Cross-sectional Study
Introduction: Road traffic traumatic injuries are the leading cause of death especially among young men who are mostly vulnerable victims. This catastrophe is more complicated in low to middle income countries. Objective: This study assessed the financial costs of traffic casualties in Iran. Method: One thousand trauma patients presenting to the emergency department of Shohaday-e-Tajrish Hospital were included in the study. The prehospital and hospital costs as well as the expenses of physiotherapy, rehabilitation, outpatient visits and further surgical interventions were considered as direct expenses. The costs of productivity loss were estimated as indirect expenses. Results: The direct and indirect costs were assessed 27.4% and 72.6% of total, respectively. The mean age of permanent disability was 43 years old. The average expenses of temporary and permanent disabilities were 2934.4 million rials (nearly 4.2 million rials per patient) and 23.9 billion rials (1.1 billion rials per person), respectively. Conclusion: The national burden of traffic injuries in Iran is significantly destructive as it consists of 2.19 % of Gross Domestic Product annually. Besides, young men are involved in most of the traffic accidents representing the need to establish rigorous preventive instructions and reduce human, and financial costs
Management of Violence and Aggression in Emergency Environment; a Narrative Review of 200 Related Articles
Context: The aim of this study is to reviewing various approaches for dealing with agitated patients in emergency department (ED) including of chemical and physical restraint methods. Evidence acquisition: This review was conducted by searching “Violence,” “Aggression,” and “workplace violence” keywords in these databases: PubMed, Scopus, EmBase, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Database, and Google Scholar. In addition to using keywords for finding the papers, the related article capability was used to find more papers. From the found papers, published papers from 2005 to 2018 were chosen to enter the paper pool for further review. Results: Ultimately, 200 papers were used in this paper to conduct a comprehensive review regarding violence management in ED. The results were categorized as prevention, verbal methods, pharmacological interventions and physical restraint. Conclusion: In this study various methods of chemical and physical restraint methods were reviewed so an emergency medicine physician be aware of various available choices in different clinical situations for agitated patients
A 24-year-old Female Traumatic Patient Following a Car Accident
A healthy 24-year-old female presented at the emergency department (ED) after a car accident with ambulance while injured severely after the bus got run over her lower limb. As the trauma team was activated, her primary survey was started: Ac (Airway and cervical collar): She was awake and could talk. Cervical collar was fixed, oxygenation with face mask was started. B (Breathing): Her chest rising was symmetrical without any laceration or abrasion. Chest auscultation was clear and there was no tenderness or crepitation on palpation. No tracheal shift was found. She had normal respiratory rate and O2 saturation of 94% at ambient air. C (Circulation): Two large bore IV lines were inserted and blood samples were obtained. Her vital signs were BP = 60/40 mmHg, PR = 130/min, RR = 12. E-FAST was performed which was negative for free fluid in abdomen, pelvis and thorax, tamponade, and hemopneumothorax. Her pelvis was unstable on examination and pelvic wrapping was performed with sheath. IV fluid therapy with normal saline was started followed by 3 units of packed RBC transfusion. More pack cells and FFP were also requested. D (Disability): She had Glasgow coma scale of 15/15 with normal size and reactive pupil. No neurologic deficit was found except disability of lower extremities due to crush injury. E (Exposure): She had no midline spinal tenderness with normal sphincter anal tone, but there was a laceration in the perineum which extended to the vagina. Portable chest and pelvic x-ray as an adjutant to primary survey were performed which showed type C pelvic fracture. On her secondary survey, she had abrasion on her scalp, 1.5 cm laceration on her right tibia, deformity of her right thigh, and laceration in her genitalia with some vaginal bleeding. Direct pressure was applied and all lacerations were packed. According to negative e-FAST and pelvic fracture and shock, since the angiography was not available, it was decided to fix the pelvis with external fixator in the operation room. After the fixation, and because shock persisted, operative pelvic packing was undertaken. Unfortunately, she suffered cardiorespiratory arrest in the operating room and died
Non-ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction in a Case of Von Willebrand Disease: a Case Report
Introduction: Studies have shown that patients with Von Willebrand disease (VWD) have decreased prevalence of thrombotic events like myocardial infarction (MI). Here we describe a case of VWD with acute non-ST-elevation MI with ongoing bleeding manifestations. Case presentation: A 37-year-old female patient presented to the emergency department with a complaint of central chest pain since 7 days. She also had a history of hemoptysis since 8 days. Electrocardiogram (ECG) revealed ST-segment depression in leads I, aVL, II, III, aVF, and V4-V6 compatible with diagnosis of Non-ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (Non STEMI). She was started on nitroglycerine infusion, angiotensin II receptor blockers, and calcium channel blockers along with trimetazidine. Her chest pain and ECG changes settled after 2 days, and she was discharged in a stable condition. Conclusion: There are limited studies available regarding the management of acute MI in VWD patients with acute bleeding manifestations. Further studies have to be carried out to determine successful ways of managing thrombotic events like MI in this subset of patients