Prednisone for emergency department low back pain: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Although oral corticosteroids are commonly given to emergency department (ED) patients with musculoskeletal low back pain (LBP), there is little evidence of benefit.

Objective: To determine if a short course of oral corticosteroids benefits LBP ED patients.

Design: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Critical care transportation by paramedics: a cross-sectional survey.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to gather data from paramedics practicing in the critical care transport setting to guide development of the education, training, and clinical practices for certification as a critical care paramedic.

Methods: A paper survey of 1991 randomly selected nationally registered (NREMT) paramedics was conducted. Nine paramedics with residences in small US Pacific Island territories were not included in the survey.

Appropriate and safe utilization of helicopter emergency medical services: a joint position statement with resource document.

This position statement with accompanying resource document is the result of a collaborative effort of a writing group comprised of members of the Air Medical Physician Association (AMPA), the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP), and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM). This document has been jointly approved by the boards of all four organizations. Patients benefit from the appropriate utilization of helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS).

Music reduces patient anxiety during interfacility ground critical care transport.

Introduction: Interfacility ground critical care transport (CCT) of patients by ambulance may be stressful. This study evaluated whether playing music during CCT reduces patient anxiety and whether objective evidence is manifested by a change in vital signs.

Setting: Urban teaching hospital.

The relation of stroke admissions to recent weather, airborne allergens, air pollution, seasons, upper respiratory infections, and asthma incidence, September 11, 2001, and day of the week.

Background And Purpose: Some previous research links stroke incidence to weather, some links strokes to air pollution, and some report seasonal effects. Alveolar inflammation was proposed as the mechanistic link. We present a unified model of time, weather, pollution, and upper respiratory infection (URI) incidence.

Adequacy of online medical command communication and emergency medical services documentation of informed refusals.

Background: In the out-of-hospital setting, when emergency medical services (EMS) providers respond to a 9-1-1 call and encounter a patient who wishes to refuse medical treatment and/or transport to the hospital, the EMS providers must ensure the patient possesses medical decision-making capacity and obtain an informed refusal. In the city of Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland EMS completes a nontransport worksheet that prompts the paramedics to evaluate specific patient characteristics that can influence medical decision-making capacity and then discuss the risks of refusing with the patient. Cleveland EMS then contacts an online medical command (OLMC) physician to authorize the refusal.