This episode of PEM Currents discusses ECPR (Extracorporeal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation), an advanced procedure used in cases of cardiac arrest when traditional CPR fails. ECPR involves using ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) to take over heart and lung functions, offering a last-resort option that is becoming more [...]
It used to be ALTE but now it's BRUE. Brief Resolved Unexplained Event. It is a better name after all. And it makes for better puns... and songs.
Converting SVT is super fun. Vagal maneuvers are like little interactive games that make heart rates slow down and stuff. Also disco music wasn’t that bad.
Patients with severe asthma exacerbations will get the proverbial "kitchen sink" thrown at them when it comes to treatment. First of all, that old idiomatic statement posits asthma treatment as a battle, which it shouldn't be. But you should be armed with a solid understanding of the evidence behind the treatments that we use when treating patients with this potentially fatal disease.
Your time is valuable and so is mine. That's why I'm sharing brief, focused podcast episodes that will hone in on a single problem. This time, it's stress dose steroids. Learn about how to give them and to not worry about tons of body surface area related math when you have a sick child in front of you.
This VERY BRIEF video reviews how to assess dehydration clinically. May it help you on your next (very busy) shift.
With the warm weather upon us here in the Northern Hemisphere it will soon be time for the pools to open. This episode is therefore incredibly timely, and focuses on the spectrum of submersion injuries and their management. Learn about drowning physiology, when to admit to the hospital, and how to assess the child who went under water unexpectedly but looks fine from this episode's special co-host and producer, Joe Finney, MD a PGY-5 Pediatric Emergency Medicine and EMS fellow from Washington University in Saint Louis, MO.
Vasopressor use in the Pediatric Emergency Department has been a moving target for my entire career. Back when I was a resident and fellow we used Dopamine. Then we went to epinephrine because it can be given through a peripheral IV because norepinephrine was too dangerous to run peripherally. But maybe that's not entirely true. I talked about initial pressor choice and more in a recent recorded Zoom conference call with Critical Care Attending Matt Zackoff from Cincinnati Children's. I hope you find his thoughts on vasopressor selection, pitfalls, and the emerging therapies as illuminating as I did.
This edition in the Facts on the Ground series reviews a large retrospective study that attempts to discern a difference between normal saline and lactated ringer's in severe sepsis.
This post from Leah Finkel and Amanda Nelson details how we should think about abnormally high blood pressure measurements in the Pediatric Emergency Department - and what to do about them.