Does sex matter? Effect of screener sex in intimate partner violence screening.

Study Hypothesis: The sex of the individual performing screening affects the willingness of adult male and female ED patients to disclose incidents of intimate partner violence (IPV).

Methods: We performed a prospective cross-sectional survey at an urban academic medical center. A consecutive sample of adults who presented to the ED from 7:00 am to 00:00 am, 7 days/wk, over an 8-week period, were screened for IPV by 26 trained research assistants (42.

Application of the TIMI risk score in ED patients with cocaine-associated chest pain.

Objective: The TIMI risk score has been validated as a risk stratification tool in emergency department (ED) patients with potential acute coronary syndrome. The goal of this study was to assess its ability to predict adverse cardiovascular outcomes in cocaine-associated chest pain.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of ED patients with chest pain with cocaine use.

Relationship between a clear-cut alternative noncardiac diagnosis and 30-day outcome in emergency department patients with chest pain.

Background: Accurate identification of patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACSs) in the emergency department (ED) remains problematic. Studies have not been able to identify a cohort of patients that are safe for immediate ED discharge; however, prior studies have not examined the utility of a clear-cut alternative noncardiac diagnosis.

Objectives: To compare the 30-day event rate in ED chest pain patients who were diagnosed with a clear-cut alternative noncardiac diagnosis with the 30-day event rate in the cohort of patients in whom a definitive diagnosis could not be made in the ED.

The impact of trauma activations on the care of emergency department patients with potential acute coronary syndromes.

Study Objective: Trauma systems improve the care of trauma patients; however, it is possible that prioritizing the emergency care of trauma patients might adversely affect other potentially ill patients requiring the same resources. We seek to determine whether the presence of a concurrent trauma activation negatively affects processes of care and outcomes for patients with potential acute coronary syndromes.

Methods: Patients who presented to the emergency department (ED) with a potential acute coronary syndrome from July 2003 to June 2004 were stratified according to whether they presented concurrently with a trauma activation.

Prospective validation of the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction Risk Score in the emergency department chest pain population.

Study Objective: The Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) risk score is a 7-item tool derived from trials of patients with unstable angina/non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction for risk stratification with respect to outcomes. It has been retrospectively evaluated in emergency department (ED) patients with potential acute coronary syndrome but has not been prospectively validated in this patient population. To validate the use of the TIMI risk score in the ED, we prospectively assess its potential utility in a broad ED chest pain patient population.

The impact of a concurrent trauma alert evaluation on time to head computed tomography in patients with suspected stroke.

Background: Emergency department (ED) overcrowding threatens quality of care by delaying the time to diagnosis and treatment of patients with time-sensitive diseases, such as acute stroke.

Objective: The authors hypothesized that the presence of a trauma alert evaluation would impede the time to head computed tomography (hCT) in patients with stroke-like symptoms.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of prospectively collected data on patients with potential stroke who received an hCT in an urban trauma center ED from January 1, 2004, to November 30, 2004.