I'm not really going out on a limb when I say that constipation is a common diagnosis in the pediatric emergency department. Now, that being said, not all patients that have a diagnosis of constipation are actually constipated. I have certainly seen scenarios where parents have been told that their child is constipated as an explanation for belly pain when [...]
Chances are you will be seeing a patient with vomiting during your next shift in the ED. That vomiting may very well be caused by a case of acute gastroenteritis (AGE). You've probably written for, and also prescribed ondansetron (Zofran) - perhaps in a reflexive fashion. As with many therapies that have become accepted into routine practice I think that it important [...]
Now check out these cool videos from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center depicting select congenital heart lesions in more detail.
This edition of PEMCurrents takes a crack at clavicle fractures. The old dictum about broken collarbones states that if both ends of the bone are in the same room it'll heal fine. For the most part this is true - at least in prepubescent patients. New literature in adults has suggested that outcomes are better for athletes when patients with [...]
There are many options for wound repair. It is no secret that the face is a common location for lacerations in children. Because children, especially toddlers and preschoolers, are inclined to be scared by intimidating ED physicians many parents inquire about dissolvable sutures, so that their child will not have to be held down twice (once for placement and once [...]
Check out the newest edition of PEMBlog Shorts - the focused video series - which focuses on diphenhydramine poisoning.
The Case After successfully reducing the shoulder of a young athlete - his fourth, your first. He says the the last 2 times he dislocated it was reduced by his team trainer on the sidelines. You obtain XRays and note the following. Courtesy of Wikipedia The Diagnosis This is a Bankart lesion. Note the abnormality in the inferior [...]
Once in a while you'll see a child with a chronic cough. Even in the absence of a compelling history - and let's face it, the history cupboard is often bare - it is important to consider the possibility of an inhaled foreign body. Thinking about the possibility of a bronchial foreign body got me thinking about the indications for [...]
A really well looking preschooler has been referred to the ED because of petechiae and bruising. The mom has consulted Dr. Google and is worried that her son has leukemia. He had a cold last week that he recovered from, and has not had any recent fevers, weight loss, bone pain, pallor or any other complaints for that matter. He [...]
Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (your garden variety cystitis) is a common ED diagnosis. For most patients there is a wide variety of potentially effective treatment options. The purpose of this post is to caution you against the use of fluoroquinolones (like ciprofloxacin) to treat uncomplicated UTIs in children. Why is this the case? Well, fluoroquinolones are known to be one [...]
