EM BLOG
Share your wisdom with your Emergency Medicine colleagues.
Read the comments below. Enter your own at the bottom. Invite your colleagues.
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Comments
Comment from Anonymous
Time: February 15, 2008, 9:37 am
CARDIAC TROPONINS:
At the all LA residency conference yesterday we discussed Troponin. All the PMD seems to hear over the phone on a cardiac admit is “Chest pain… blah, blah, blah… troponin is negative”. They never take in to consideration timing. Troponin seems to be one of the most misunderstood lab tests. Sensitivity at 0, 4, 8 & 12 hours from ED presentation is 50%, 75%, 85% and 99% respectively. We need to let people know that a negative single troponin means almost nothing in the patient who presents to the ED with ACUTE chest pain. It is also useless to rule out unstable angina. I almost want to stop ordering this test.
Comment from Tool Master
Time: February 15, 2008, 9:58 am
TOOLS Vs. RULES
Enough with all these “Rules” already. Now we have the PERC Rules too. We need to use different terminology or the trial lawyers are going to have a field day with us when we don’t follow the rules. Rules are rules, not meant to be broken. Tools are implements you use when they will help you with the task at hand. Other terms such as “Criteria” or “Decision Instrument” are fine too, but can we (especially the researchers) please abolish the word “Rule” from our vocabulary. We all know that we need to be careful and double-check our work, but we also need care for each patient individually and we definitely don’t need to do anything that is going to worsen the current malpractice climate.
Comment from Ken
Time: April 23, 2008, 7:17 pm
Sugammadex, Vernakalant, F#@!*
Comment from Kenneth
Time: April 23, 2008, 7:20 pm
Never be the first or the last to use a new therapy. Sugammadex, Vernakalant, F#@!*
Comment from Kenny
Time: April 23, 2008, 7:21 pm
Why am I hearing lectures on drugs that are not yet even approved by the FDA! Is someone sleeping with the drug company reps? Can we please focus our CME on therapies that are at least FDA approved. It seems like half of the new drugs get taken off the market within a few years of release anyway.
Never be the first or the last to use a new therapy.
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