Background: The opioid overdose crisis is one of the worst public health crises ever to face the US and emerging evidence suggests its effects are compounded by the presence of drug adulterants. Here we report our efforts to characterize the adulterants present within the local fentanyl supply of San Diego County, obtained from undifferentiated drug samples seized by local law enforcement over the calendar year 2021.
Methods: Thirty-two participating local law enforcement agencies across San Diego submitted 4838 unknown individual illicit drug samples (total of 312 kg) to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department Regional Crime Laboratory for identification.
Objectives: Rattlesnake envenomations are uncommon, and the majority occur in adults. Although Crotalidae equine immune F(ab') 2 antivenom (F(ab') 2 AV; trade name ANAVIP) was introduced in 2018, no pediatric specific studies of F(ab') 2 AV have been reported to date. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical performance and adverse effects of F(ab') 2 AV in children.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe report a rare domestic case of exposure to tianeptine and use of a novel, extended-release, six-armed, star-shaped, drug delivery capsule. A 40-year-old male with a history of depression, anxiety, ethanol, opioid, cannabis, and tobacco use disorders presented to the emergency department (ED) from a substance abuse residential recovery treatment program after developing hypertension, tachycardia, and tremor for two day. He used an extended-release, six-armed, star-shaped, drug delivery device he purchased online, filling each arm with 15 mg of tianeptine (90 mg total).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHuman exposures to "fire color changing" agents containing copper salts (CS) are rare. We report the case of an intentional mixed CS ingestion with resulting corrosive gastrointestinal injury absent classic laboratory abnormalities. A 23-year-old male with a history of bipolar disorder presented to the emergency department two hours after intentional ingesting an unknown quantity of the fire colorant "Mystical Fire," which contains cupric sulfate (CuSO) and cupric chloride (CuCl).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) is the world's largest living lizard and exists in private captivity worldwide. Bites to humans are rare and have been proposed to be both infectious and venomous.
Case Report: A 43-year-old zookeeper was bitten on the leg by a Komodo dragon and suffered local tissue damage with no excessive bleeding or systemic symptoms to suggest envenomation.
Introduction: Though acetaminophen overdoses are common, acetaminophen induced methemoglobinemia is rare and it is thought to be due to oxidative stress from reactive metabolites. However, few prior cases of sulfhemoglobinemia in the setting of acetaminophen overdose have been reported. We report a case of mixed methemoglobinemia and sulfhemoglobinemia in the setting of a large, isolated acetaminophen ingestion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSevere cases of hydrocarbon aspiration requiring Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) are rarely reported in pediatrics, and 90% of hospitalized patients have a relatively benign clinical course. We describe a 14 month-old female with accidental hydrocarbon ingestion and aspiration due to organic makeup brush cleaner that suffered severe ARDS and multiorgan failure, successfully managed with ECMO and surfactant. She was decannulated after a total of 72 hours on ECMO, extubated on hospital day 15 (HD 15), and discharged home in her normal state of health after one month in the hospital.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Am Coll Emerg Physicians Open
December 2022
Introduction: Pediatric organophosphate insecticide poisonings are rare in the United States, and life-threatening toxicity is rarely seen. We report 2 accidental ingestions of the organophosphate insecticide coumaphos that resulted in life-threatening symptoms.
Case Reports: A 7-year-old boy and 10-year-old girl both presented from home after accidental ingestion of 1 "spoonful" of coumaphos 20% liquid (Asuntol; Bayer de Mexico, S.
Bromism is an unusual syndrome characterized by a variety of nervous system impairments such as ataxia, confusion, and delusions. Contemporaneous cases are rare as therapeutic use of bromide-containing medications has declined, but bromides can still be obtained as unregulated dietary supplements. Bromism from dietary supplements is not well-described.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Lithium is an uncommon pediatric exposure, and the effects of accidental or exploratory ingestions are not well characterized. This study examined the clinical effects and outcomes of unintentional lithium ingestions treated in a health care facility for patients up to 16 years old.
Methods: The database from a single-state Poison Control System was queried for all pediatric lithium exposures managed in a health care facility between January 2006 and December 2021.
A 46-year-old man presented with a painless mass on his dorsal right foot one week after striking it on a door. A traumatic hematoma was suspected, and needle aspiration of the mass is considered. However, point-of-care ultrasound performed by the emergency physician identified a pseudoaneurysm of the dorsalis pedis artery, a rare condition that can occur after minor trauma or iatrogenic intervention.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Emergency department (ED) crowding is associated with patient safety concerns, increased patients left without being seen (LWBS), low patient satisfaction, and lost ED revenue. The objective was to measure the impact of a revised triage process on ED throughput.
Methods: This study took place at an urban, university-affiliated, adult ED with an annual census of 70,000 and admission rate of 34%.