Metoprolol vs diltiazem for atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate: Systematic review and meta-analysis of adverse events.

Background: Intravenous (IV) diltiazem and metoprolol are commonly used to achieve rate control for atrial fibrillation with RVR (Afib with RVR), and are both recommended as first-line by current guidelines. While prior studies investigated the efficacy of these medications, there is little evidence available regarding the risk of adverse events (AEs) with their use.

Methods: We identified randomized controlled trials (RCT) and observational studies reporting rates of AEs following administration of IV diltiazem and metoprolol for Afib with RVR by searching PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library.

Air or Ground Transport to the Critical Care Resuscitation Unit: Does It Really Matter?

Objective: Critically ill patients requiring urgent interventions or subspecialty care often require transport over significant distances to tertiary care centers. The optimal method of transportation (air vs. ground) is unknown.

Prevalence of peri-intubation major adverse events among critically ill patients: A systematic review and meta analysis.

Background: Peri-intubation major adverse events (MAEs) are potentially preventable and associated with poor patient outcomes. Critically ill patients intubated in Emergency Departments, Intensive Care Units or medical wards are at particularly high risk for MAEs. Understanding the prevalence and risk factors for MAEs can help physicians anticipate and prepare for the physiologically difficult airway.

Solidarity and strife after the Atlanta spa shootings: A mixed methods study characterizing Twitter discussions by qualitative analysis and machine learning.

Background: On March 16, 2021, a white man shot and killed eight victims, six of whom were Asian women at Atlanta-area spa and massage parlors. The aims of the study were to: (1) qualitatively summarize themes of tweets related to race, ethnicity, and racism immediately following the Atlanta spa shootings, and (2) examine temporal trends in expressions hate speech and solidarity before and after the Atlanta spa shootings using a new methodology for hate speech analysis.

Methods: A random 1% sample of publicly available tweets was collected from January to April 2021.

Post-traumatic stress in healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased healthcare worker (HCW) susceptibility to mental illness. We conducted a meta-analysis to investigate the prevalence and possible factors associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among HCW during the COVID-19 pandemic. We searched PubMed, SCOPUS and EMBASE databases up to May 4th, 2022.

Leveraging 13 million responses to the U.S. COVID-19 Trends and Impact Survey to examine vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and mask wearing, January 2021-February 2022.

Background: The urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic called upon the joint efforts from the scientific and private sectors to work together to track vaccine acceptance and prevention behaviors.

Methods: Our study utilized individual responses to the Delphi Group at Carnegie Mellon University U.S.

Leveraging 13 million responses to the Facebook COVID-19 Trends and Impact Survey to examine vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and mask wearing, January 2021-February 2022.

The urgency of the COVID-19 global pandemic called upon the joint efforts from the scientific and private sectors to work together to track vaccine acceptance, prevention behaviors, and symptoms. Our study utilized individual responses to the Facebook’s COVID-19 Trends and Impact Survey from January 2021 to February 2022 (n=13,426,245) to examine contextual and individual-level predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and mask wearing. Adjusted logistic regression models were developed to examine individual and zip code predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccination status.

Emergent Endoscopy for Esophageal Foreign Body Removal: The Impact of Location.

Background Timely intervention is essential for the successful removal of ingested foreign bodies. Emergent endoscopy (EGD) is usually performed in the emergency department (ED), operating room (OR), intensive care unit (ICU), or endoscopy suite. However, because the endoscopy suite is not always available, this study investigated the impact of location outside of the endoscopy suite on the successful removal of ingested foreign bodies and other patient outcomes.

Nurses and Efficacy of Ultrasound-Guided Versus Traditional Venous Access: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Ultrasound-guided venous cannulation is an increasingly popular tool for peripheral intravenous catheter placement among nursing providers as opposed to standard of care landmark-based placement methods. This systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the use of ultrasound-guided versus landmark-based catheter cannulation among nursing providers across existing literature.

Methods: PubMed, Scopus, and Embase were searched for eligible studies from their beginning to June 11, 2021.

Progress and push-back: How the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd impacted public discourse on race and racism on Twitter.

This study examined whether killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor by current or former law enforcement officers in 2020 were followed by shifts in public sentiment toward Black people. : Google searches for the names "Ahmaud Arbery," "Breonna Taylor," and "George Floyd" were obtained from the Google Health Application Programming Interface (API). Using the Twitter API, we collected a 1% random sample of publicly available U.

Efficacy of Ultrasound-Guided Peripheral Intravenous Cannulation versus Standard of Care: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Peripheral intravenous cannulation (PIV) is a common and necessary procedure in the emergency department (ED). Patients with PIV access encounter significant treatment delay. Ultrasound guidance for PIV (USGPIV) cannulation is a modality to reduce delay of care in such patients, but its efficacy, when compared with cannulation by the standard of care (SOC), the landmark and palpation method, has not been well established.

Severe Bandemia Is Not Associated With Increased Risk for Adverse Events in General Pediatric Emergency Department Patients.

Introduction:  The presence of band cells > 10% of the total white blood cell (WBC) count ("bandemia") is often used as an indicator of serious bacterial illness (SBI). Results from studies of bandemia as a predictor of SBI were conflicting and little is known about the relationship between severe bandemia (SB) and clinical outcomes from SBI in children. We hypothesized that SB (band level > 20%) is not associated with adverse outcomes in an emergency department (ED) pediatric population.

Intubation rate of patients with hypoxia due to COVID-19 treated with awake proning: A meta-analysis.

Background: Awake prone positioning (PP), or proning, is used to avoid intubations in hypoxic patients with COVID-19, but because of the disease's novelty and constant evolution of treatment strategies, the efficacy of awake PP is unclear. We conducted a meta-analysis of the literature to assess the intubation rate among patients with COVID-19 requiring oxygen or noninvasive ventilatory support who underwent awake PP.

Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases through August 15, 2020 to identify relevant randomized control trials, observational studies, and case series.

Exploring U.S. Shifts in Anti-Asian Sentiment with the Emergence of COVID-19.

Anecdotal reports suggest a rise in anti-Asian racial attitudes and discrimination in response to COVID-19. Racism can have significant social, economic, and health impacts, but there has been little systematic investigation of increases in anti-Asian prejudice. We utilized Twitter's Streaming Application Programming Interface (API) to collect 3,377,295 U.