To wrap up our toxicology module, Dr. Sumaya Mekkaoui reviewed serotonin syndrome. This can be a challenging diagnosis to make and is often misinterpreted as other psychiatric or medical syndrome. Look ahead for a quick review on the clinical presentation, drugs implicated in serotonin syndrome, and comparing/contrasting similar toxidromes.
The Urine Drug Screen (UDS) is a commonly used test in the emergency department, however there are many shortcomings that limit its diagnostic utility. The Urine Drug Screen is exactly that – a SCREENing and not a confirmatory test! This week Dr. Lauren Murphy educated us on: 1) the potential false positives and negatives of the UDAS and 2) the detection times that drug metabolites are at a concentration in the urine to trigger a positive result (cutoff value). Read ahead for the reference tables!
After the awesome RESUS/EM conference last week, we return to our module of the month: Toxicology. This week Dr. Lauren Murphy has summarized the key points of her talk on the toxic alcohols. Knowing a little bit about toxic alcohol ingestion is very useful, as it is a fatal toxicity but treatable when recognized in a timely manner!
Today, EM Daily with Cooper Medical School hosted a number of local residency programs for the first RESUS/EM conference. These fantastic lectures will be available on EM Daily in a couple weeks, but to hold you over, here are some pearls from the day!
Have you considered using ultrasound to diagnose pneumonia in children? This week for his critically appraised topic, Dr. Michael Coletta researched whether point-of-care ultrasound is a better imaging study for diagnosing pediatric pneumonia than chest xray. Read ahead for the details....
Education for all EM providers about the ongoing opioid epidemic is paramount. This week during conference a member of the DEA educated us on the opioid epidemic and discussed some strategies and initiatives for prevention. Read ahead for the highlights:
Last Thursday was the yearly Cooper EM residency retreat at the shore in Avalon, NJ. In addition to some spectacular teaching tips on summer emergencies, we had some great small group discussion and role-playing regarding one of the toughest (and least discussed) aspects of our jobs: difficult discussions with consultants, admitting physicians, and patients. Read on for some great interpersonal communications tips (and some pics of the Cooper EM residents hard at work).
Looking for a quick review on snake bites? As we continue our summer emergencies module, Dr. Michael Coletta educated us on snake envenomations, treatment options and resources. Continue reading for the highlights!
This week to kick off our academic year for our Summer Emergencies module, Dr. David Lambert joined us from Penn to talk about diving emergencies. Read ahead for the highlights from his awesome talk!
