Publications by authors named "Aleksandr M Tichter"

A single high-sensitivity troponin-T (hs-TnT) measurement may be sufficient to risk-stratify emergency department (ED) patients with possible acute coronary syndrome (ACS) using the recalibrated History, Electrocardiogram, Age, Risk Factors, Troponin (rHEART) score. We sought to validate this approach in a multiethnic population of United States patients and investigate gender-specific differences in performance. We conducted a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of adult ED patients with possible ACS at a single, urban, academic hospital.

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Article Synopsis
  • Many algorithms for evaluating acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in emergency departments depend on measuring changes in troponin levels over specific time intervals, which can be challenging in a busy setting.
  • A study involving 821 patients indicated that using a troponin "velocity" approach (the rate of change in troponin levels) may effectively predict major cardiac events within 30 days, even without strict timing for specimen collection.
  • The findings suggested that while the new velocity-based algorithm showed a decent negative predictive value, it performed comparably well when incorporated into existing European Society of Cardiology protocols using troponin measurements.
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Background: Despite having well-described benefits, diversifying the physician workforce has been an ongoing challenge. Within emergency medicine (EM), multiple professional organizations have identified expanding diversity and inclusion as top priorities. The following is a description of an interactive session held at the SAEM annual meeting addressing recruitment strategies for underrepresented in medicine (URiM) and sexual and gender minority (SGM) students into EM.

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Study Objective: To evaluate whether the introduction of a 1-hour high-sensitivity cardiac troponin-T (hs-TnT) pathway for patients who present to the emergency department (ED) with suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS) improves ED patient flow without changing the rate of "missed" major adverse cardiac events (MACE), compared to use of conventional cardiac troponin with an associated 3-hour pathway.

Methods: This was a prospective, uncontrolled observational study conducted before and after implementation of a 1-hour hs-TnT pathway at a high-volume urban ED. Patients undergoing evaluation for ACS in the ED were enrolled during their initial visit and clinical outcomes were assessed at 30 and 90 days.

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Background: Since 2013, US residency programs have used the competency-based framework of the Milestones to report resident progress and to provide feedback to residents. The implementation of Milestones-based assessments, clinical competency committee (CCC) meetings, and processes for providing feedback varies among programs and warrants systematic examination across specialties.

Objective: We sought to determine how varying assessment, CCC, and feedback implementation strategies result in different outcomes in resource expenditure and stakeholder engagement, and to explore the contextual forces that moderate these outcomes.

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Audience: The virtual escape room is a didactic activity for emergency medicine residents (interns, junior residents, senior residents).

Introduction: Residency programs are employing a wide variety of active learning techniques to engage their learners, including large-group discussion, small-group activities, team-based learning, gamification, problem-based learning, role-playing and case studies. In recent years, educators have drawn their attention to educational escape rooms, a new type of learning activity that utilizes collaborative learning activities to foster creating thinking, communication, teamwork and leadership.

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Background: COPD is the third leading cause of death, with acute exacerbations accounting for 1.5 million emergency department (ED) visits annually. Guidelines include recommendations for antibiotic therapy, though evidence for benefit is limited, and little is known about ED prescribing patterns.

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