What is the best way to evaluate a pregnant patient in whom you suspect pulmonary embolism? There is no definitive guideline, but there is no shortage of opinions. Jeff Kline and I work through the evidence and lack thereof. DIRECT DOWNLOAD What is the fetal radiation exposure from CT pulmonary angiogram and ventilation perfusion scan [...]
IV Contrast fact and fiction
April 3, 2013 by 6 Comments
There are times when the safety of IV contrast can be a confusing quagmire. We know that iodinated contrast for CT scans can hurt the kidneys. But is it harmful for someone who already has renal failure and is on dialysis? What about the breastfeeding mother? Will IV contrast harm her infant? How should we [...]
Bath Salts and Synthetic Marijuana
March 21, 2013 by 1 Comment
Bath salts (not the kind you put in the tub) and synthetic marijuana – agitated delirium, kidney failure, and death. The new drugs of abuse come with a high cost. Direct Download Leon Gussow from The Poison Review blog joins ERcast to give the low down on Bath Salts and Synthetic Marijuana. Links The Poison [...]
Medical clearance, Locum Tenens, and Patient Satisfaction: Rant off 2013
March 8, 2013 by 14 Comments
The gloves are off and the vitriol is bubbling hot. This is the episode where you get the mic and tell the world what really gets your goat.
The birth of emergency medicine: Greg Henry and Don Stader
February 28, 2013 by 3 Comments
How did emergency medicine evolve into its current incarnation? It wasn’t always a smooth ride and just a few decades ago, there were no full time emergency physicians. In the early 1961, the Alexandria Plan changed everything and the specialty of emergency medicine was born. Greg Henry and Don Stader take us through the early [...]
Shoulder Injuries
January 26, 2013 by 3 Comments
Humerus fractures, shoulder dislocations, broken clavicles, shoulder separations and then some. We cover all the bases of acute shoulder injuries with sports medicine orthopedist Dr. Brett Andres. It’s also ERcast’s third anniversary, so raise a toast and thanks for listening. Direct download podcast Links mentioned in the podcast introduction Splint Like a Pro Cunningham technique [...]
Chest Trauma with Kenji Inaba
December 4, 2012 by 3 Comments
How much hemothorax deserves a chest tube? Does even a small amount of pericardial blood in penetrating trauma need to go to the OR?
Chest tubes 101
November 29, 2012 by 1 Comment
Video demonstrations of how to place several different types of chest tubes. Techniques: standard tube, pigtail, Seldinger technique.
Should we cardiovert acute Atrial Fibrillation in the ED?
October 27, 2012 by 23 Comments
Is it safe to cardiovert a hemodynamically stable patient with recent onset atrial fibrillation? The evidence says yes, but not everyone is a believer.
Jeff Kline talks D-dimer: is the cutoff too low?
October 2, 2012 by Leave a Comment
There is no perfect way to rule out pulmonary embolism. But what if we could change the game and move the d-dimer cutoff higher in the low risk patient? From 500 ng/ML to 1000ng/mL. You’d think that the specificity of the test would improve – fewer false positives. But what would we sacrifice in sensitivity? [...]