Usefulness of ultrasonography for the evaluation of catheter misplacement and complications after central venous catheterization.

Objective: To assess whether ultrasonographic examination compared to chest radiography (CXR) is effective for evaluating complications after central venous catheterization.

Methods: We performed a prospective observational study. Immediately after central venous catheter insertion, we asked the radiologic department to perform a portable CXR scan.

Extension of a coronary intramural hematoma after blunt chest trauma.

Coronary artery dissection and intramural hematoma after blunt chest trauma are rare, but life-threatening, complications. Coronary intramural hematoma extension is even rarer. A 31-year-old man was transferred to our hospital for worsening left chest pain during while he was admitted at a nearby hospital due to blunt chest trauma.

Multiple cerebral infarct with cerebral vasculitis in a young patient with ulcerative colitis.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic and debilitating disorder, characterized by inflammation of the colonic mucosa. UC can be considered a systemic disorder but UC-related manifestations in the central nervous system (CNS) are quite rare. A 29-year-old man was admitted to the emergency department with repeated generalized tonic-clonic (GTC) type seizures.

Factors affecting the urologist's decision to administer ureteral stone therapy: a retrospective cohort study.

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the factors influencing treatment option selection among urologists for patients with ureteral stones, according to the stone diameter and location.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 360 consecutive patients who, between January 2009 and June 2014, presented to the emergency department with renal colic and were eventually diagnosed with urinary stones via computed tomography. The maximal horizontal and longitudinal diameter and location of the stones were investigated.

The effect of hydraulic bed movement on the quality of chest compressions.

Objectives: The hydraulic height control systems of hospital beds provide convenience and shock absorption. However, movements in a hydraulic bed may reduce the effectiveness of chest compressions. This study investigated the effects of hydraulic bed movement on chest compressions.

Comparison between an instructor-led course and training using a voice advisory manikin in initial cardiopulmonary resuscitation skill acquisition.

Objective: We compared training using a voice advisory manikin (VAM) with an instructor-led (IL) course in terms of acquisition of initial cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills, as defined by the 2010 resuscitation guidelines.

Methods: This study was a randomized, controlled, blinded, parallel-group trial. We recruited 82 first-year emergency medical technician students and distributed them randomly into two groups: the IL group (n=41) and the VAM group (n=37).

Optimal chest compression rate in cardiopulmonary resuscitation: a prospective, randomized crossover study using a manikin model.

Objectives: When performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), the 2010 American Heart Association guidelines recommend a chest compression rate of at least 100 min, whereas the 2010 European Resuscitation Council guidelines recommend a rate of between 100 and 120 min. The aim of this study was to examine the rate of chest compression that fulfilled various quality indicators, thereby determining the optimal rate of compression.

Methods: Thirty-two trainee emergency medical technicians and six paramedics were enrolled in this study.

Does cardiac catheterization laboratory activation by electrocardiography machine auto-interpretation reduce door-to-balloon time?

Objectives: In an attempt to begin ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treatment more quickly (referred to as door-to-balloon [DTB] time) by minimizing preventable delays in electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretation, cardiac catheterization laboratory (CCL) activation was changed from activation by the emergency physician (code heart I) to activation by a single page if the ECG is interpreted as STEMI by the ECG machine (ECG machine auto-interpretation) (code heart II). We sought to determine the impact of ECG machine auto-interpretation on CCL activation.

Methods: The study period was from June 2010 to May 2012 (from June to November 2011, code heart I; from December 2011 to May 2012, code heart II).

Acupuncture as analgesia for non-emergent acute non-specific neck pain, ankle sprain and primary headache in an emergency department setting: a protocol for a parallel group, randomised, controlled pilot trial.

Introduction: This study aims to assess the feasibility of acupuncture as an add-on intervention for patients with non-emergent acute musculoskeletal pain and primary headache in an emergency department (ED) setting.

Methods And Analysis: A total of 40 patients who present to the ED and are diagnosed to have acute non-specific neck pain, ankle sprain or primary headache will be recruited by ED physicians. An intravenous or intramuscular injection of analgesics will be provided as the initial standard pain control intervention for all patients.

A 10-s rest improves chest compression quality during hands-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation: a prospective, randomized crossover study using a manikin model.

Objectives: This study was designed to assess changes in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) quality and rescuer fatigue when rescuers are provided with a break during continuous chest compression CPR (CCC-CPR).

Methods: The present prospective, randomized crossover study involved 63 emergency medical technician trainees. The subjects performed three different CCC-CPR methods on a manikin model.

Prognostic significance of different subgroup classifications of critical illness-related corticosteroid insufficiency in patients with septic shock.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prognostic significance of classification of patients with septic shock into different critical illness-related corticosteroid insufficiency subgroups. A retrospective observational study was conducted in patients with septic shock who underwent a short corticotropin stimulation test within 72 h of the onset of shock. Patients were classified into normal adrenal function (NOM), low basal cortisol (LBC) (basal cortisol, <10 μg/dL), or low Δ cortisol (LDC) (basal cortisol, ≥10 μg/dL; cortisol, <9 μg/dL) groups.

Validation of the Simplified Acute Physiology Score 3 scoring system in a Korean intensive care unit.

Purpose: The Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS) 3 was recently proposed to reflect contemporary changes in intensive care practices. SAPS 3 features customized equations for the prediction of mortality in different geographic regions. However, the usefulness of SAPS 3 and its customized equation (Australasia SAPS 3) have never been externally validated in Korea.

Outcomes in critically ill patients with hematologic malignancies who received renal replacement therapy for acute kidney injury in an intensive care unit.

Introduction: In critically ill patients with hematologic malignancies, acute kidney injury (AKI) usually occurs in the context of multiple organ failure due to various etiologies and is associated with poor prognosis. The objective of the present study was to identify the prognostic factors associated with intensive care unit (ICU) mortality in patients with hematologic malignancies and AKI requiring renal replacement therapy (RRT).

Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 94 patients with hematologic malignancies and AKI who received RRT in the ICU of Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Korea, between January 2004 and December 2007.