How useful is the pediatric appendicitis score in adolescent females?
Can the Pediatric Appendicitis Score help you in the diagnosis of appendicitis in adolescent females?
From the Archives: Spring Break Edition
Yes, I'm on Spring Break this week. So, no "new" content. But what if you haven't dove into the PEMBlog Archives? Check out a few of my educational series posts here.
FYI on ABI
In adults calculating the ankle-brachial index (ABI) is a relatively simple way to confirm the clinical suspicion of lower extremity arterial occlusive disease. In pediatric lower extremity limb injury patients where vascular compromise is a concern (think bad fractures, lawnmower calamities) it may also be a helpful test. [...]
Why we do what we do: Ultrasound for appendicitis
Why we do what we do has returned - this time focusing on the use of ultrasound in appendicitis, which has become the test de rigeur these days in most Pediatric Emergency Departments. I won't belabor the point on how important it is to correctly diagnose [...]
What are you waiting for? Send that kid with intussusception home
Back into the fray once more we go - or should I say back into the colon goes the ileum... Yes, the third article in the top 10 from the 2014 AAP NCE focuses on intussusception. Back when I was an intern™ after a child [...]
Equivocal ultrasound for appy? Consider MRI instead of CT
Let's move on to the next in the series of top ten articles presented at the 2014 AAP NCE in San Diego. Again, I'll review the article and briefly and highlight how you can use the results in the ED. By now, most of us have acknowledged that ultrasound [...]
Briefs: Mesenteric Lymphadenitis – A cause of pain or an excuse?
Allow me to present a common clinical scenario. The patient presents with right lower quadrant abdominal pain. Appendicitis is in the differential diagnosis. After an appropriately thorough H&P you have ascertained that it is not gastro/UTI/strep/pneumonia/constipation/porphyria/pregnancy etc., etc,. and obtain an ultrasound which shows a [...]
Quick hits: Here’s why the appendix is more likely to be perforated upon presentation in younger kids
Perforation is more likely in younger kids because: 1. The appendix has a thinner wall 2. Younger children can’t communicate as well, resulting in prolonged symptoms before diagnosis 3. The level of suspicion for appendicitis is lower in younger age groups Pro-Tip: In addition, appendicitis [...]
What I’m reading: Racial and ethnic disparities in abdominal pain management
Check out this study from Johnson et al. in Pediatrics. In "Association of Race and Ethnicity With Management of Abdominal Pain in the Emergency Department" the authors reviewed NHAMCS data and noted that patients who were categorized as non-Hispanic black were less likely to receive any [...]
The complete intussusception series is right here
Check out all four posts of the intussusception series right here. Part 1: The basics Part 2: Ultrasound-ing good Part 3: Air it out Part 4: Stuck in the middle with you (small bowel-small bowel)