March 18, 2017

Vision Loss in the Emergency Department Patient

March 18, 2017/ Jeff Holmes

Hi guys! Sorry it has been so long since our last post. We were busy preparing for our Winter Symposium Conference last week in Sugarloaf, Maine. We had a fantastic line up of speakers and hope to share them with you over the coming months. Here is a sample from one of our guest speakers, Jacob Avila, MD. He spoke to us about vision loss in the emergency department patient.

February 21, 2017

Fluoroquinolones, Your Lawyer and You

February 21, 2017/ Matthew Delaney, MD, FACEP

Fluoroquinolones are a widely used class of antibiotics that are effective in treating a wide variety of infections. Despite their popularity there is increasing concern regarding the potential complications associated with these agents. Here we discusses the current evidence regarding the risks associated with fluoroquinolone use.

February 16, 2017

Simulation Cases Cliff's Notes - 2/15/17

February 16, 2017/ Jeffrey A. Holmes, MD

No deep dive here, just the top five take aways from this month's high fidelity simulation cases (peri-mortem c-section, pediatric head trauma with hemophilia, severe facial trauma, severe hypothermia).

February 12, 2017

Grandma Is Stoned! - Unintended Emergency Department Patients after Marijuana Legalization

February 12, 2017/ Tammi H. Schaeffer, DO, FACEP, FACMT

Currently, 25 states and Washington, DC have varying degrees of legalization of marijuana. Most are medical marijuana but some have legalized recreational marijuana. This has led to a rise in certain unexpected health concerns. With the reality of Maine legalizing recreational marijuana, we thought this was a good time to look at some of the early literature coming out of Colorado.

February 09, 2017

Liver Failure Patients - Ten Simple Tips for Complicated Patients

February 09, 2017/ Samantha Wood, MD

Whether it is from alcoholic cirrhosis, acetaminophen overdose, or chronic hepatitis, liver failure patients are complicated. Their exams are difficult, multiple organ systems are affected and they have complex pathophysiology. Here are ten simple tips for these complicated patients.

February 07, 2017

AAEM Clinical Practice Statement Summary- SUB DISSOCIATIVE DOSE OF KETAMINE

February 07, 2017/ Sheldon Stevenson, MD

We love ourselves some low dose ketamine for pain control. Does it work well? We think so . . but don't take our word for it. Here's our summary of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine's practice statement on it.

January 31, 2017

"It starts with a K . . . " - Low Dose Ketamine for Pain Control

January 31, 2017/ Joleen Bierlein. Pharm.D.

Pain control in the emergency department is an important part of patient care and a key reason patients seek our help. Current pharmacologic methods include opiates, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), acetaminophen, and regional anesthesia. Opiates often produce inadequate pain control in both opiate tolerant and opiate naïve patients and have adverse effects such as over-sedation, respiratory depression, nausea, hypotension, tolerance, and dependence [1]. NSAID use can be complicated by nephrotoxicity, gastropathy, and cardiac toxicity and have been implicated in 11% of adverse drug reaction related hospital admissions [2].

January 08, 2017

Most Important Articles of 2015 - Garreth Debiegun MD, FACEP, FAWM

January 08, 2017/ Garreth Debiegun, MD, FACEP, FAWM

2015? Didn't we just ring in the new year? . . . It is never too late to get some lit review pearls from the analytical mind of Dr. Debiegun. Here's one from the vault we thought we would share.