OBJECTIVES: Sternal fractures (SFs) are rare pathologies that mainly occur as a result of traffic accidents, which can cause mortality due to concomitant complications. In this study, we aimed to evaluate clinical processes and termination status of patients diagnosed with a SF in the emergency department. METHODOLOGY: Patients diagnosed with a SF in the emergency department during 8 years were retrospectively reviewed. The demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients were recorded, and standard data forms were created. RESULTS: In total, 128 patients were included in the study; 81 (63.3%) patients were male, and the mean age was 49.4 years. When the fracture mechanism was examined, car traffic accidents were the most common type and the cause of fracture in 85 (66.4%) patients. The most common thoracic pathology accompanying SFs was rib fractures (35.9%), and the most common extrathoracic pathology was cranial pathology (27.3%). Pericardial effusion was detected in 12 (9.4%) patients. Of the participating patients, one died and the others were hospitalized. CONCLUSION: Since SFs and associated complications can be life-threatening, emergency room physicians should consider it in the diagnosis. In particular, the necessary examinations and follow-up should be done to assess cardiac damage.

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In this article, we discuss the successful treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a rare complication of opioid overdose, through high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy (HFNCOT). A 32-year-old male patient was referred to the emergency department with an ambulance due to a state of confusion following intravenous opioid intake. On arrival, the patient had an arterial blood pressure of 100/60 mmHg, pulse of 112 beats/min, respiratory rate of 8 breaths/min, and oxygen saturation (SpO₂) of 75%. On neurologic examination, he had miotic and isochoric pupils, and Glasgow Coma Score was 12 (E: 3 M: 5 V: 4). Cardiac examination showed that the heart was rhythmic and tachycardic. Chest examination revealed bibasilar crackles and wheezing. Naloxone was administered to the patient, and oxygen treatment was applied through a mask. Then, HFNCOT was commenced to the patient in whom the PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio in the blood gas was calculated as 141 following antidote treatment and whose chest radiograph showed bilateral infiltrations. The patient was discharged from the emergency critical care unit on the 3^rd day of his hospitalization because infiltrations in his chest radiograph regressed. HFNCOT can recover the patient's hypoxemia and help reduce the necessity of mechanical ventilation in patients with mild or moderate ARDS.

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OBJECTIVES: Sutures require follow-up visits for favorable evolution. To improve postemergency wound care, we decided to include a standardized advice sheet for patients based on current recommendations. The objective is to assess its effectiveness on outpatients' compliance after being discharged from the emergency department (ED). METHODS: We performed a prospective, pre–post design trial in an ED of a teaching hospital. We included for two consecutive months all patients aged ≥16 years old and consulting for wounds that needed suturing, and we excluded chronic wounds, burns, and hand wounds since they all need special care. During the 1^st month, all patients received during ED visit usual verbal instructions concerning the postemergency care (Group A). During the 2^nd month, all patients received usual verbal instructions and a standardized written advice sheet that detailed postemergency wound care (Group B). We organized telephone follow-up after the suture removal date and asked about dressing changes, appearance of infection signs, and respect of suture removal date. We compared patients;' characteristics in the two groups and performed a multivariable logistic regression using compliance to discharge instructions as our endpoint. RESULTS: For 2 months, 509 patients consulted for wounds. 119 (23.4%) patients were included in the study and followed. Baseline characteristics of patients did not differ between the two groups. Patients who received the advice sheet (Group B) had a better compliance in postemergency care (91.7% vs. 72.9%;P= 0.01). Moreover, there were significantly less dressing changes in Group B than in Group A (5.3 [2.2] vs. 12.9 [7.7];P< 0.01) and suture removal date was more in agreement with recommendations in Group B (83.9% vs. 66.7%;P= 0.03). Occurrence of infection was not significantly different between groups (9.7% vs. 13.7%;P= 0.37). CONCLUSION: For the management of wound care, discharge hospital process including a written advice sheet improves outpatients' compliance and postemergency care.

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OBJECTIVES: Because the benefits of bicarbonate therapy remain unclear, it is not routinely recommended for the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) given to individuals with cardiac arrest (CA). This study aims to evaluate the clinical benefits of bicarbonate therapy in adults with CA. METHODS: Without any language restriction, we searched PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane CENTRAL from the inception until April 30, 2020. We performed hand-search to identify the relevant trials included in previous meta-analyses. Included studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing bicarbonate and placebo treatment in adults with CA. Two authors independently assessed the trial risk of bias. The primary outcome was the survival to hospital admission. The secondary outcomes included the return of spontaneous circulation, the survival to hospital discharge, and the neurological outcome at discharge. We calculated the odds ratios of those outcomes using the Mantel-Haenszel model and assessed the heterogeneity using the I² statistic. RESULTS: Our searches found 649 unduplicated studies. Of these, three RCTs involving 1344 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The trial risk of bias ranged between fair and poor, mainly due to no blindness of outcome assessment and the selective reports of outcomes. Bicarbonate therapy showed no significant improvement in the survival to hospital admission (odds ratio [OR] 0.96; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.73–1.25). Subgroup analysis in those receiving prolonged CPR showed a similar result (OR 0.88; 95% CI 0.10–8.01). No study reported the predefined secondary outcomes. CONCLUSION: For both acute and prolonged CPR, bicarbonate therapy might not show benefit to improve the rate of survival to hospital admission in adults with cardiac arrest.

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Massive pulmonary embolism (PE) is one of the important emergencies that needs aggressive treatment for decreasing the risk of death. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and fibrinolysis should be considered in patients with failure in oxygenation and perfusion despite invasive mechanical ventilation and vasopressor treatment. We present the case of a 22-year-old male who underwent ECMO, systemic fibrinolysis, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation because of massive PE and subsequently developed intraperitoneal bleeding.

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This is the first report on a case of perindopril/amlodipine-induced thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) syndrome. A 48-year-old female was admitted complaining of nettle rash all over the body, bloody urine, and weakness shortly after starting antihypertensive therapy with perindopril/amlodipine. Shortly thereafter, she developed pronounced hemiparesis, somnolence, and sensorimotor aphasia. Laboratory findings were compatible with microangiopathic hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia. She was diagnosed with TMA. Cessation of perindopril/amlodipine therapy and treatment with plasma exchange and systemic corticosteroids resulted in full recovery. Very seldom perindopril/amlodipine may cause hematologic abnormalities, probably through an immunological mechanism, but there were no reports of causing TMA so far. In our case, the symptoms began shortly after the start of perindopril/amlodipine use. The clinical course of TMA in the case was compatible with TMA related to an acute, immune-mediated drug reaction. The most important thing is to promptly recognize TMA and its induction by a drug because distinctive treatment and cessation of the suspected drug can prevent severe outcome, as it was avoided in our patient.

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OBJECTIVES: In this study, we aimed to investigate the accuracy of recognition of stroke in the Emergency Room (ROSIER) Scale in the diagnosis of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) transferred to the emergency department (ED). METHODS: The present study was a multicenter study. Records from patients suspected of stroke, who referred to the ED were reviewed. Demographic, clinical, and diagnostic data were extracted and then entered in checklists. ROSIER Scale was used to evaluate the possible diagnosis in this study. The definitive diagnosis of a stroke was made based on neurologist's assessment and clinical and neuroimaging findings, mainly brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted for assessing the accuracy of ROSIER in discrimination of stroke. RESULTS: The data of 356 suspected stroke patients were analyzed. Of all, 186 patients (52.2%) were male, and the mean age was 65.2 (standard deviation = 14.0) years ranging from 26 to 95 years. One hundred and fifty-one patients (42.4%) had AIS based on the final diagnosis. The area under the ROC curve was 0.85. The best cutoff point for ROSIER scale was ≥1 with a sensitivity of 85.4% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 78.8, 90.6%) and specificity of 65.8% (95% CI: 58.9, 72.3%). CONCLUSION: Based on the findings, although the best cutoff point was the same as the original (derivation) study, its sensitivity (85.4% vs. 92%) and specificity (65.8% vs. 86%) were considerably lower.

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OBJECTIVE: We report the hospital outcomes after implementing the blue code system in our hospital and health campus. We also aimed to determine factors related to mortality. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of the patients who received cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). All blue code calls for all age groups between March 15, 2013, and April 30, 2015 were analyzed. Logistic regression analysis was performed to find independent predictors of in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: A total of 155 patients from the blue code calls were evaluated. Return of spontaneous circulation was achieved in 45.5% of patients, and 54.8% of the patients had died at the end of the CPR. The hospital discharge rate was 20%. Of all patients, 65% were adults with a survival rate of 7.9%, whereas pediatric patients had a 44.2% survival rate. Asystole and pulseless electrical activity were the predominant electrocardiography rhythms in 92.4% of patients. The comparison of survivors and nonsurvivors revealed that nonsurvivors were older, had more cancer as the comorbidity, had a more cardiac arrest, and sepsis as the underlying cause and had >20 min of CPR. The logistic regression analysis demonstrated the independent risk factors for mortality as arrest at a hospital ward, and sepsis as the underlying cause and being adult patient. CONCLUSION: The performance of the blue code system should be evaluated periodically. Every effort should be made to prevent unexpected cardiac arrests and increase hospital discharge with good neurologic outcomes.

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