Objectives: Tropical storms and hurricanes often produce ocean wave conditions that attract surfers. The risk for serious injury or death from "storm surfing" has not yet been described in the medical literature. This study aimed to quantify deaths attributable to storm surfing along the coasts of North America and the Caribbean islands.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Phys Med Rehabil
September 2021
The novel coronavirus 2019 pandemic has led to new dilemmas in medical education because of an initial shortage of personal protective equipment, uncertainty regarding disease transmission and treatments, travel restrictions, and social distancing guidelines. These new problems further compound the already existing problem of limited medical student exposure to the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation, particularly for students in medical schools lacking a department of physical medicine and rehabilitation, approximately 50% of medical schools. A virtual medical student physical medicine and rehabilitation rotation was created to mitigate coronavirus 2019-related limitations and impact on medical education.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe cause of neuralgic amyotrophy is often unknown but is commonly associated with a recent upper respiratory viral tract infection. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a tireless effort to understand the sequelae of the virus. A 46-yr-old woman who presented after a COVID-19 hospitalization complicated by hypoxic respiratory failure requiring intubation and mechanical ventilation for 23 days was subsequently found to have lower limb sensorium changes as well as upper limb weakness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Phys Med Rehabil
October 2020
A previously independent 66-yr-old right-handed man presented with right-sided weakness, preferring the lower limbs with additional impaired gait and dysarthria for 1-day duration. Imaging found a large left hemispheric anterior cerebral artery ischemic infarction with multiple lacunar infarcts. He exhibited frontal, callosal, and posterior variants of alien hand syndrome, which impeded activities of daily living.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDespite the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1851 Personal Protective Equipment Care and Maintenance guidelines, little is known about the routine cleaning of firefighter bunker gear. In collaboration with a large Florida firefighter union, a mobile phone text survey was administered, which included eight questions in an item logic format. In total, 250 firefighters participated in the survey of which 65% reported cleaning their bunker gear in the past 12 months.
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