The Effects of Interactive eBooks on Dyspnea Assessment and Management among Emergency Medical Technicians: A Repeated-Measures Analysis.

Dyspnea is a common emergency requiring urgent care, and a variety of factors may mislead emergency medical technicians (EMTs). Typically, EMT education uses traditional lectures with paper books. The effect of interactive eBooks on EMT learning has not been explored.

Video Assisted Laryngoscope Facilitates Intubation Skill Learning in the Emergency Department.

Background: Up-to-date technology has been increasingly useful for learning resuscitation skills in the emergency and resuscitation settings. It improves the learning curve of the learners and helps them to avoid making mistakes on real patients. This study aimed to evaluate the educational efficiency for tracheal intubation by comparing Macintosh (direct) laryngoscope (DL) and video laryngoscope (VL) learning in novices.

Systemic inflammatory response syndrome is more associated with bacteremia in elderly patients with suspected sepsis in emergency departments.

Early diagnosis of bacteremia for patients with suspected sepsis is 1 way to improve prognosis of sepsis. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) has long been utilized as a screening tool to detect bacteremia by front-line healthcare providers. The value of SIRS to predict bacteremia in elderly patients (≥65 years) with suspected sepsis has not yet been examined in emergency departments (EDs).

The effect of prolonged ED stay on outcome in patients with necrotizing fasciitis.

Objective: Overcrowding in hospitals, especially in EDs, is a serious problem in the United States, Europe, and Taiwan. However, the association between prolonged ED boarding stay and mortality in patients with necrotizing fasciitis remains underinvestigated.

Methods: This was a retrospective study.

Medical problems requiring mountain rescues from 1985 to 2007 in Yu-Shan National Park, Taiwan.

Wang, Shih-Hao(1,2) Tai-Yi Hsu,(1,2) Jen-Tse Kuan,(1,2) Jih-Chang Chen,(1,2) Wei-Fong Kao,(3) Te-Fa Chiu,(1,2) Yu-Cheng Chen,(1,2) and Hang-Cheng Chen.(1,2) Medical problems requiring mountain rescues from 1985 to 2007 in Yu-Shan National Park, Taiwan. High Alt.

Cardiac tamponade secondary to haemopericardium in a patient on warfarin.

Acute cardiac tamponade requires urgent diagnosis and treatment. We report a case involving a 70-year-old man who was receiving warfarin treatment for 12 years following mitral valve replacement. The international normalised ratio (INR) was checked and echocardiography performed regularly in the clinic.

Utility of impedance cardiography for dyspneic patients in the ED.

Background: Dyspnea is one of the most common emergency department (ED) symptoms, but early diagnosis and treatment are challenging because of multiple potential causes. Hemodynamic parameters may aid in the evaluation of dyspnea, but are difficult to assess. Impedance cardiography is a noninvasive hemodynamic measurement method that may assist in early ED decision making.

The influence of cardiopulmonary resuscitation without defibrillation on serum levels of cardiac enzymes: a time course study of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors.

Background: The serum concentration of cardiac enzymes may be influenced by mechanical and electrical trauma due to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) attempts. This could complicate the determination of whether an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) had occurred. In this study, only patients without any of the known confounding factors affecting cardiac enzyme release were included, and the specific time course and patterns of serum cardiac enzyme levels after resuscitation were evaluated.

Designation of a new training model of a local disaster medical system with tabletop exercises.

Background: A new model of a local disaster medical system (LDMS) was proposed through the consensus method of expert panel meetings for county governments in Taiwan. This LDMS model adopts a local emergency medical response system (EMRS) for dealing with daily accidents as a basic structure by expanding its roles and functions. The objective of this study was to determine the feasibility of the new LDMS model by evaluating its initial phase response to simulated disasters using tabletop exercises.