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 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.

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].