Pediatric Emergency Digest Volume 6
This edition of Pediatric Emergency Digest, from the fellows in Emergency Medicine at Cincinnati Children's focuses on cognitive bias, UTI testing and whether or not pelvic exams are helpful.
Influenza TweetStorm!
OK, what is a TweetStorm? Its a series of rapid fire tweets all embedded in one thread that focuses on a single topic. I just did an influenza related TweetStorm and for those of you not on Twitter here is the information I shared. Even if you are not on Twitter the embedded tweet should take you to all of the information.
In the days of cefotaxime shortages…
In the days of cefotaxime shortages we must seek out alternative antibiotics - Check out this post for recommendations on alternative cephalosporins, especially for the febrile infant.
A sinusitis podcast
Did you know that up to 9% of URIs are eventually complicated by acute sinusitis in children? This episode of PEM Currents, the Pediatric Emergency Medicine podcast focuses on making the diagnosis of acute bacterial rhinosinusitis clinically and when to pull the antibiotic prescription trigger.
You don’t need a test to diagnose the flu
Influenza season is in full swing. Most areas of the US are seeing widespread influenza activity.Though some patients can become very ill, and even die most do well. The main purpose of this post is to encourage you to use clinical history and physical examination to allow you to make the diagnosis of influenza, especially when disease prevalence is high. The bottom line is that you are smart, and if you think it is the flu you are probably right.
A concise video synopsis of David Schnadower’s study on probiotics in gastroenteritis from the New England Journal of Medicine
In an effort to better disseminate high quality and high impact research I am delighted to present to you this video that I recorded with James Gray and David Schnadower from Cincinnati Children's. I provides a quick synopsis of the recent study on probiotics in gastroenteritis and offers advice on how you can discuss this issue with parents.
Should we be prescribing probiotics for gastroenteritis?
Learn about two recent studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine that called into question the use of specific probiotic formulations in children with gastroenteritis.
A discussion about probiotics for gastroenteritis with David Schnadower
Check out this in-depth interview with the lead author on the recent New England Journal paper on the use of probiotics in gastroenteritis. David Schnadower was kind enough to sit down with me and James Gray, a Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellow from Cincinnati Children's to talk about the study and its implications for the care of children with infectious gastroenteritis.
Romaine calm! Some information about E. coli O157:H7
The recent report of a multi-state outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 secondary to romaine lettuce may to to parental fears - specifically hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Fortunately the risk of transmission is low. But, just in case you have someone who is worried and seeking reassurance - or actually needs a work up I wanted to provide some information.
A podcast on acute flaccid myelitis
Acute Flaccid Myelitis is a rare but serious disease characterized by rapid onset of muscle weakness. Diagnosis also requires an MRI with lesions in multiple spinal levels or CSF pleocytosis. cases have been reported over the past several years and though a specific cause is unknown strains of enterovirus are suspected culprits.