Emergency Medicine News and Research

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Lack of psychiatric beds puts hospital ERs under stress

There's a lack of psychiatric beds in Pennsylvania, and it's placing undue stress on hospital emergency departments, according to doctors across the state.

29 Oct 2013

Research needed to better understand causes of gun violence from medical perspective

Gun violence is a significant public health problem, according to members of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, and research should be conducted to better understand its sources and causes from a medical perspective so that it can be properly addressed.

29 Oct 2013

Pertussis incidence: an interview with Leonard Friedland, M.D., V.P. and Director of Scientific Affairs and Public Health for GSK Vaccines

Distinguishing pertussis (also known as whooping cough) from other respiratory illnesses is challenging in particular among adults because the signs and symptoms of pertussis overlap with those of other respiratory diseases.

24 Oct 2013

GW researcher explores successful interventions implemented outside ED to reduce existing ED use

In recent years, many groups, including policy makers and health systems, have looked for ways to reduce the number of visits to the emergency department (ED) as a way to lower costs and improve the quality of care. Research conducted by Jesse Pines, M.D., director of the Office of Clinical Practice Innovation and professor of emergency medicine at the George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences, explored interventions that had been implemented outside of EDs that were designed to reduce ED use.

24 Oct 2013

Severe allergies in young people: an interview with Lynne Regent, CEO of Anaphylaxis Campaign

Around one third of the UK population – approximately 19 million people – will develop an allergy at some time in their lives. A significant proportion of these – around a million people – suffer severe symptoms.

17 Oct 2013

Childhood gunshot injuries require more major surgery, have greater mortality

A research team led by Oregon Health & Science University and the University of California, Davis, reveals that childhood gunshot injuries, while uncommon, are more severe, require more major surgery, have greater mortality and higher per-patient costs than any other mechanism for childhood injury - particularly among adolescent males. The study is published online in the journal Pediatrics.

16 Oct 2013

Three universities receive $2M grant to develop Stroke Regional Coordinating Center

Stroke is the second leading cause of death in Los Angeles County and the fourth in the U.S. In order to cut those numbers, it's imperative that new treatments be developed and refined for stroke prevention, acute therapy and recovery after stroke.

16 Oct 2013

Emergency departments across Michigan are more prepared to handle natural disaster

Emergency Departments across Michigan are better prepared to handle a disaster today than they were seven years ago, according to a Henry Ford Hospital study.

15 Oct 2013

Researchers to present latest findings in emergency medicine research at ACEP13-Scientific Assembly

Leading researchers in emergency medicine will present more than 400 studies during ACEP13-Scientific Assembly, the annual meeting of the American College of Emergency Physicians in Seattle, Washington.

15 Oct 2013

Research roundup: Medicare Part D in 2014; barriers to mental health care; scattered patterns of ACOs

Medicare Part D continues to be a marketplace with an array of competing plans offered at a wide range of premiums and benefit designs. In 2014, Medicare beneficiaries will have a choice of 35 stand-alone PDPs, on average, up by four from 2013. ... Beneficiaries receiving Low-Income Subsidies will have access to a modestly higher number of plans for no monthly premium in 2014 compared to 2013 ... Notable trends for 2014 include a growing share of PDPs using preferred pharmacy networks and adopting more formulary cost-sharing tiers.

12 Oct 2013

Novel community program to improve the way childhood asthma controlled outside hospital

Indiana University School of Medicine emergency medicine faculty hope to improve the way childhood asthma is medically managed in Marion County through an innovative program that incorporates the skills and flexible schedules of specially trained Indianapolis Emergency Medical Services paramedics.

11 Oct 2013

Study shows that emergency visits for kids with sports-related TBI increased 92%

Researchers report a skyrocketing increase in the number of visits to the emergency department for kids with sports-related traumatic brain injuries, such as concussions.

30 Sep 2013

Study finds support among federally licensed firearms retailers for denying handgun purchases

A scientific survey of gun dealers and pawnbrokers in 43 U.S. states has found nearly unanimous support for denying gun purchases based on prior convictions and for serious mental illness with a history of violence or alcohol or drug abuse - conditions that might have prevented Washington Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis from legally purchasing a firearm.

24 Sep 2013

Fingerstick blood sample test using i-STAT device not accurate in determining troponin level: Study

Researchers have determined that fingerstick cardiac troponin I assay testing using thepoint-of-care i-STAT device is not accurate enough to determine the exact troponin level without the application of a corrective term.

21 Sep 2013

Lightning strike causes IED-like injuries

Eight-year-old twin boys, camping in a backyard tent, received penetrating blast injuries when a bolt of lightning struck a transformer near their tent, sending them to the emergency department for treatment.

20 Sep 2013

Urgent Matters announces winners of ACEP's Emergency Care Innovation of the Year Award

Urgent Matters, Blue Jay Consulting, and Schumacher Group are pleased to announce the winners of the Emergency Care Innovation of the Year Award, a newly created competition to foster innovation in emergency departments nationwide.

20 Sep 2013

Study: 4% of head-trauma scans in children have unexpected results that may need follow up

The largest study of computed tomographic scans taken in emergency departments across the country for children with head injuries describes the prevalence of "incidental findings" - results that were not expected from the injury - and categorizes them by urgency.

13 Sep 2013

Improved lung function in patients with moderate asthma severity observed with investigational Tiotropium

Boehringer Ingelheim will present a pooled analysis of new data from the Phase 3 UniTinA-asthma® program at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Annual Congress 2013 in Barcelona. The data from the individual MezzoTinA-asthma® Phase 3 studies (NCT01340209 and NCT00565266), from which the pooled data are derived, show the addition of tiotropium delivered via the Respimat® inhaler to medium-dose maintenance inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy (defined as 400-800 µg budesonide/day or equivalent) improved lung function and provided sustained bronchodilation over 24 hours in patients with moderate asthma and airflow limitation. Tiotropium is being investigated to determine the medicine’s efficacy in treating asthma patients and is not currently approved for this indication.

11 Sep 2013

Study shows huge cost implications in getting injured patients to appropriate trauma hospitals

During a three-year period in seven metropolitan areas in the western United States, the emergency medical services system sent more than 85,000 injured patients to major trauma hospitals who didn't need to go there - costing the health care system more than $130 million per year, according to an Oregon Health & Science University study published today in the journal Health Affairs.