Urgent Management of Penetrating Ocular Injury: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Ocular globe injury is a severe ophthalmic emergency that requires immediate attention in the emergency department. In this case report, we present a 35-year-old male who suffered a penetrating ocular injury and globe rupture caused by a nail puncture. The patient presented with severe pain and visual loss and was treated with tetanus vaccination, empirical antibiotics, and pain control, followed by an urgent orbital computed tomography (CT) scan and consultation with an ophthalmologist.

Parental Educational Intervention to Facilitate Informed Consent for Pediatric Procedural Sedation in the Emergency Department: A Parallel-Group Randomized Controlled Trial.

Obtaining valid parental informed consent for pediatric procedures in the emergency department (ED) is challenging. We compared a video-assisted informed consent intervention with conventional discussion to inform parents about pediatric procedural sedation in the ED. We conducted a prospective randomized controlled trial using a convenience sample including the parents of children in the ED in whom procedural sedation for facial laceration was recommended.

Educational video-assisted versus conventional informed consent for trauma-related debridement surgery: a parallel group randomized controlled trial.

Background: We investigated whether, in the emergency department (ED), educational video-assisted informed consent is superior to the conventional consent process, to inform trauma patients undergoing surgery about the procedure, benefits, risks, alternatives, and postoperative care.

Methods: We conducted a prospective randomized controlled trial, with superiority study design. All trauma patients scheduled to receive trauma-related debridement surgery in the ED of Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital were included.

Development and pilot testing of an informed consent video for patients with limb trauma prior to debridement surgery using a modified Delphi technique.

Background: Ensuring adequate informed consent for surgery in a trauma setting is challenging. We developed and pilot tested an educational video containing information regarding the informed consent process for surgery in trauma patients and a knowledge measure instrument and evaluated whether the audiovisual presentation improved the patients' knowledge regarding their procedure and aftercare and their satisfaction with the informed consent process.

Methods: A modified Delphi technique in which a panel of experts participated in successive rounds of shared scoring of items to forecast outcomes was applied to reach a consensus among the experts.

More becomes less: management strategy has definitely changed over the past decade of splenic injury--a nationwide population-based study.

Background: Blunt spleen injury is generally taken as major trauma which is potentially lethal. However, the management strategy has progressively changed to noninvasive treatment over the decade. This study aimed to (1) find out the incidence and trend of strategy change; (2) investigate the effect of change on the mortality rate over the study period; and (3) evaluate the risk factors of mortality.

The effect of alcohol intoxication on mortality of blunt head injury.

Alcohol is found to have neuroprotection in recent studies in head injuries. We investigated the association of blood alcohol concentration (BAC) with mortality of patients with blunt head injury after traffic accident. All patients sustaining blunt head injury caused by traffic accident brought to our emergency department who had obtained a brain computed tomography scans and BAC were analyzed.

Patient outcomes following subarachnoid hemorrhage between the medical center and regional hospital: whether all patients should be transferred to medical centers.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a critical illness that may result in patient mortality or morbidity. In this study, we investigated the outcomes of patients treated in medical center and nonmedical center hospitals and the relationship between such outcomes and hospital and surgeon volume. Patient data were abstracted from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan in the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000, which contains all claims data of 1 million beneficiaries randomly selected in 2000.

How early should VATS be performed for retained haemothorax in blunt chest trauma?

Background: Blunt chest injury is not uncommon in trauma patients. Haemothorax and pneumothorax may occur in these patients, and some of them will develop retained pleural collections. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has become an appropriate method for treating these complications, but the optimal timing for performing the surgery and its effects on outcome are not clearly understood.

Incidence, national trend, and outcome of nontraumatic subarachnoid haemorrhage in Taiwan: initial lower mortality, poor long-term outcome.

To investigate the longitudinal trend of nontraumatic subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH), we analyzed the annual population-based incidence and mortality rate of nontraumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage in Taiwan. Logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors of mortality. The average incidence rate (IR) of nontraumatic SAH was 6.

Association of head, thoracic and abdominal trauma with delayed diagnosis of co-existing injuries in critical trauma patients.

Background: Management of critically injured patients is usually complicated and challenging. A structured team approach with comprehensive survey is warranted. However, delayed diagnosis of co-existing injuries that are less severe or occult might still occur, despite a standard thorough approach coupled with advances in image intervention.

Early predictors of narcotics-dependent patients in the emergency department.

It is not unusual that narcotics-dependent patients fulfill their medical requirements in the emergency department (ED). The behavior of these patients varies, and their manifestations and predictors are still not fully studied. We performed this retrospective study by prospectively collecting data on patients with suspected drug dependence who were undiagnosed at first and then treated for some kind of reported pain at the ED.

Building an ethical environment improves patient privacy and satisfaction in the crowded emergency department: a quasi-experimental study.

Background: To evaluate the effectiveness of a multifaceted intervention in improving emergency department (ED) patient privacy and satisfaction in the crowded ED setting.

Methods: A pre- and post-intervention study was conducted. A multifaceted intervention was implemented in a university-affiliated hospital ED.

Surgeon commitment to trauma care decreases missed injuries.

Study Objective: Missed injuries sustain an important issue concerning patient safety and quality of care. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of surgeon commitment to trauma care on missed injuries. We hypothesised that surgeons committed to the trauma service has less missed injuries than surgeons not committed to the trauma service would have.

Less is more? The impact of trauma volume on the positive rate of head computed tomography scans in head trauma patients.

Objective: Few studies have assessed the impact of trauma volume on the operational efficiency of emergency departments. Herein, we evaluate the association between trauma volume with the positive rate of head computed tomography scans in head trauma patients in a tertiary care hospital.

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort review involving all head trauma patients presenting to a tertiary care hospital.

Conductor-assisted nasal sonography: an innovative technique for rapid and accurate detection of nasal bone fracture.

Background: Nasal bone is frequently involved in craniofacial trauma. We sought to investigate the role of conductor-assisted nasal sonography (CANS) in patients with nasal trauma.

Methods: In all, 71 patients sustaining midfacial trauma who underwent CANS examination with simultaneous facial computed tomography (CT) scans were reviewed.

Combination of white blood cell count with liver enzymes in the diagnosis of blunt liver laceration.

Background: It is sometimes difficult to decide whether to perform abdominal computed tomographic (CT) scans for possible liver laceration in patients who have sustained less severe or minor blunt abdominal trauma. This study was conducted to find out whether the basic laboratory workup could provide information of possible liver laceration in blunt abdominal trauma patients and act as an indication for CT scans.

Methods: In this retrospective case-control study, we included 289 patients who had sustained blunt abdominal injury for which they received abdominal CT scans in our emergency department.