Defining an Ultrasound-guided Regional Anesthesia Curriculum for Emergency Medicine.

Objectives: Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia (UGRA) can be a powerful tool in the treatment of painful conditions commonly encountered in emergency medicine (EM) practice. UGRA can benefit patients while avoiding the risks of procedural sedation and opioid-based systemic analgesia. Despite these advantages, many EM trainees do not receive focused education in UGRA and there is no published curriculum specifically for EM physicians.

Ultrasound-guided transverse abdominis plane block for ED appendicitis pain control.

The ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block or TAP block is a well-established regional anesthetic block used by anesthesiologists for peri-operative pain control of the anterior abdominal wall. Multiple studies have demonstrated its utility to control pain for a range of procedures from inguinal hernia repair, laparoscopic cholecystectomies to cesarean sections [1-3]. There are no cases describing the efficacy of the ultrasound-guided TAP block in the emergency department as a part of a multimodal pain pathway for patients diagnosed with acute appendicitis.

ED placement of perineural catheters for femoral fracture pain management.

Regional nerve blocks provide superior analgesia over opioid-based pain management regimens for traumatic injuries such as femur fractures. An ultrasound-guided regional nerve block is placed either as a single-shot injection or via a perineural catheter that is left in place. Although perineural catheters are commonplace in the perioperative setting, their use by emergency physicians (EPs) for emergency pain management in adults has not been previously described.

Ultrasound-guided Intraarticular Hip Injection for Osteoarthritis Pain in the Emergency Department.

Ultrasound-guided intraarticular hip corticosteroid injections may be useful for emergency care providers treating patients with painful exacerbations of osteoarthritis of the hip. Corticosteroid injection is widely recommended as a first-line treatment for painful osteoarthritis of the hip. Bedside ultrasound is readily available in most emergency departments; however, using ultrasound to guide therapeutic hip injections has not yet been described in emergency practice.

The ultrasound-guided superficial cervical plexus block for anesthesia and analgesia in emergency care settings.

The ultrasound-guided superficial cervical plexus (SCP) block may be useful for providers in emergency care settings who care for patients with injuries to the ear, neck, and clavicular region, including clavicle fractures and acromioclavicular dislocations. The SCP originates from the anterior rami of the C1-C4 spinal nerves and gives rise to 4 terminal branches--greater auricular, lesser occipital, transverse cervical, and suprascapular nerves--that provide sensory innervation to the skin and superficial structures of the anterolateral neck and sections of the ear and shoulder. Here we describe an ultrasound-guided technique for blockade of the SCP that is potentially well suited to emergency care settings.

Ultrasound-guided abdominal wall nerve blocks in the ED.

Introduction: The anterolateral abdominal wall is innervated by the T7 to L1 anterior rami, whose nerves travel in the fascial plane between the internal oblique and transversus abdominus muscles, known as the transversus abdominus plane (TAP). Ultrasound-guided techniques of regional anesthesia that target the TAP are increasingly relied upon by anesthesiologists for pain management related to major abdominal and gynecologic surgeries. Our objective was to explore the potential utility of these techniques to provide anesthesia for abdominal wall procedures in the emergency department (ED).

Effect of bedside ultrasound on management of pediatric soft-tissue infection.

Background: Superficial soft-tissue infections (SSTI) are frequently managed in the emergency department (ED). Soft-tissue bedside ultrasound (BUS) for SSTI has not been specifically studied in the pediatric ED setting.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of a soft-tissue BUS evaluation on the clinical diagnosis and management of pediatric superficial soft-tissue infection.

Emergency department bedside ultrasonographic measurement of the caval index for noninvasive determination of low central venous pressure.

Study Objective: Among adult emergency department (ED) patients undergoing central venous catheterization, we determine whether a greater than or equal to 50% decrease in inferior vena cava diameter is associated with a central venous pressure of less than 8 mm Hg.

Methods: Adult patients undergoing central venous catheterization were enrolled in a prospective, observational study. Inferior vena cava inspiratory and expiratory diameters were measured by 2-dimensional bedside ultrasonography.