Let’s learn more about POCT pregnancy tests… At our institution, we use a POCT pregnancy test using urine. This is an immunochemical test that can additionally be used by serum to detect pregnancy. In order to obtain accurate results, those developing the test must wait THREE minutes using a urine sample and FIVE minutes usingRead more
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A 36 year old male with no past medical history presents reporting two weeks of worsening penile pain and notes pain when retracting his foreskin. Vital signs are within normal limits. Without giving the answer away with the patient’s exam, let’s make a differential!Read more
A nurse from triage presents a case to you of a 43 year old woman that he believes is having an allergic reaction. When you evaluate the pain, you notice her skin is bright red from her face to her ankles. She denies any pruritis, and you do not appreciate any hives. She denies anyRead more
Chika-what? The CDC recently sent out an alert (June 17th, 2014) to healthcare providers regarding the outbreak of the infection caused by the chikungunya virus in multiple Caribbean countries (http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/chikungunya-caribbean). The chikungunya virus is an RNA virus that was originally described in infected individuals in Tanzania, but outbreaks have been found in Asia, the Indian subcontinent,Read more
A three month old male presents to the pediatric emergency department with his mother who reports patient has been constipated recently, his last bowel movement was five days ago. She reports he has also been had decreased appetite and PO intake. No vomiting. No obvious pain complaints. He appears generally weak to his mother. HisRead more
A patient presents to you from a nursing home, with paperwork stating that her G tube fell out this morning as her nurse was attempting to give her her daily medications. What further information do you need to know, and how do you proceed?Read more
A 33 year old male Riker’s inmate presents to the emergency department after corrections officers report that he was observed to have jumped off a chair in his cell, with a bed sheet tied around his neck. Per officers, they were able to cut him down after approximately 1 minute of him being partially suspended.Read more
A mother runs into the pediatrics emergency department, clutching her 10 month old daughter. She states her daughter had been drinking from her bottle at home and then stopped drinking, turned purple, and became limp for ten seconds, and then started crying. Her daughter is still crying now, moving around in her mother’s arms. VitalRead more
As emergency physicians, we have all noticed that the number of geriatrics patients that visit the emergency department continues to increase over time. It is projected that by 2013, 20% of the population will be age 65 or older. One important issue with respect to geriatrics patients is inappropriate prescription/use of medications. Data shows thatRead more
Your patient is a 35 year old male who presents with right hand laceration, he states he was reaching blindly into a drawer of utensils, and cut the volar aspect of digits 2-5. The laceration appears deep. How do you assess for ligament and tendon function in the fingers/hand? Read more