Publications by authors named "Guy Merchant"
Background. It is unclear whether history and physical examination findings can predict abnormalities on head computed tomography (CT) believed to indicate increased risk of lumbar-puncture- (LP-) induced brain herniation. The objectives of this study were to (1) identify head CT findings felt to be associated with increased risk of brain herniation and (2) to assess the ability of history and physical examination to predict those findings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: To derive a decision instrument (DI) that identifies patients who have virtually no risk of significant intrathoracic injury (SITI) visible on chest radiography and, therefore, no need for chest imaging.
Methods: This is a prospective observational study. At three Level 1 trauma centers, physicians caring for blunt trauma patients aged >14 years were asked to record the presence or absence of 12 clinical criteria before viewing chest imaging results.
Study Objective: We externally validate the ability of the San Francisco Syncope Rule to accurately identify syncope patients who will experience a 7-day serious clinical event.
Methods: Patients who presented to a single academic emergency department (ED) between 8 am and 10 pm with syncope or near-syncope were prospectively enrolled. Treating physicians recorded the presence or absence of all San Francisco Syncope Rule risk factors.
Objectives: Prior evidence suggests that physicians may alter process of care based on race/ethnicity. The objective of this study was to determine whether race/ethnicity predicts whether a patient receives computed tomography of the head (head CT) during evaluation of blunt head injury.
Methods: This was a nonconcurrent cohort study set in an emergency department of a Level 1 trauma center in a university medical center.