Annual Emergency Medicine and Acute Care Conference

Newborn screening for critical congenital heart disease using pulse oximetry: The most common congenital disorder in newborns is congenital heart disease (CHD). In the first year of life requiring surgery or catheter- based intervention is known as Critical CHD. Normally in case of infants with critical cardiac lesions, the risk of morbidity and mortality increases when there is a delay in diagnosis and timely referral to a tertiary center with expertise in treating these patients. Pulse oximetry:   it is a non-invasive method for monitoring a person's oxygen saturation. The application mode of pulse oximetry includes, a sensor device is placed on a thin part of the patient's body, usually a fingertip or earlobe, or in the case of an infant, across a foot. In this process the device passes two wavelengths of light through the body part to a photodetector.  The changing absorbance at each of the wavelength are measured by this, which allowing it to determine th...

Bronchitis (Acute) Symptoms, Causes, Treatment, and Cures: An inflammation of the lining of your bronchial tubes is known as Bronchitis. There are two types of bronchitis    1) acute bronchitis, and 2) chronic bronchitis. Acute bronchitis is defined as a cough lasting five or more days also known as a chest cold, the cough may linger for weeks. In some cases people with recurrent acute bronchitis develop chronic bronchitis and a respiratory infection. Chronic bronchitis is known to be lasts for at least 3 months, 2 years in a row. It is defined as a cough that occurs every day with sputum production.   Medical attention is required for chronic bronchitis. Chronic bronchitis is one of the conditions included in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Viral or bacterial infection are the most common way for infection, due to this people become infected with or “get” acute bronchitis.   Irritants like tobacco smoke, air pollution, or chemicals ar...

Serotonin syndrome (serotonin toxicity): Serotonin syndrome or toxicity is known to be one type of life-threatening condition related with increased serotonergic activity in the central nervous system (CNS). It is otherwise known as serotonin toxicity.  Serotonin syndrome also seen with therapeutic medication use .It is also includes inadvertent interactions between drugs, and intentional self-poisoning. Cause:   Serotonin syndrome can be caused by a large number of medications and street drugs when taken alone at high doses or in combination with other serotonergic drugs. Serotonin syndrome has been detected in all age groups, including newborns and the elderly. Physical examination :   tachycardia and hypertension are the typical vital sign abnormalities, but in severe cases may develop hyperthermia and dramatic swings in pulse and blood pressure. Pertinent physical examination findings may include: Hyperthermia , Agitation, Inducible or sponta...

How to treat and prevent ear barotrauma: Barotrauma  is one type of physical damage to body tissues caused by  a change in pressure around the ear . A person can feel pain. Discomfort in the middle of their ear or can  cause discomfort or pain as well as difficulty hearing. It is important that people understand what ear barotrauma is so that they can seek medical attention if necessary.  The condition of barotrauma can be acute or chronic. Acute cases are common and generally harmless. Though, a person with chronic ear barotrauma will experience prolonged symptoms, which may lead to further complications. Causes of ear barotrauma: The common cause of ear barotrauma is the blockage of the eustachian tube, which connects the ear and mouth and when there are external changes in pressure, the eustachian tube is responsible for maintaining balance. Due to a blockage in the tube, the pressure differences created inside and outside the middle ear can ...

Acute Abdomen Symptoms and Management: The acute abdomen shows a rapid onset of severe life- threatening symptoms includes the sudden, spontaneous, nontraumatic disorder whose chief manifestation is in the abdominal area.  For acute abdomen urgent operation may be necessary. Acute abdomen has a large number of possible causes and so a structured approach is required. If the patient has an acute surgical problem the initial assessment for acute abdomen should attempt that requires immediate and prompt surgical intervention, or urgent medical therapy. Abdominal pain is a common problem. Symptoms and Causes: Vomiting, Haematemesis or melaena, Stool/urine colour, Fainting, dizziness or palpitations, Fever/rigors, Rash or itching, Urinary symptoms, recent weight loss. Some common causes of acute abdomen usually involve a slower rate of bleeding, but with urgent surgery still required, include bleeding gastric ulcer, ruptured ectopic pregnancy, and trauma. ...

Hypercalcemic Crisis: Symptoms and Complications Hypercalcemic crisis  is one life-threatening condition that is currently rather rare in which the calcium level in the blood is above normal. The risk factor i.e. too much calcium in the blood can weaken the bones, create kidney stones also shows its effect on heart and brain work. Symptoms: For mild hypercalcemia, the person might not have signs or symptoms. In severe cases produce signs and symptoms related to the parts of the body affected by the high calcium levels in your blood.  Examples include: Kidneys. Kidneys have to work harder when the amount of calcium in the blood is too high. This can leads to excessive thirst and frequent urination. Digestive system. Hypercalcemia can cause stomach upset, nausea, vomiting and constipation. Brain. Hypercalcemia can interfere with our brain works, resulting in confusion, lethargy and fatigue. It can leads to depression. Heart.Severe hypercalcemia can i...

Rhabdomyolysis: Causes and Symptoms The life threatening syndrome due to a direct or indirect muscle injury is known as rhabdomyolysis . Rhabdomyolysis results from the death of muscle fibers and release of their contents into the bloodstream. This can lead to serious complications such as renal failure. The kidneys cannot remove waste and concentrated urine in case of renal failure. Rhabdomyolysis can even leads to death in rare cases. However, for a good outcome prompt treatment is required. Symptoms: The initial symptoms of rhabdomyolysis include: fatigue, low urine output, muscle weakness, nausea, vomiting, confusion, agitation, infrequent urination and fever. The complications of rhabdomyolysis include very high levels of potassium in the blood.  That can leads to an irregular heartbeat or cardiac arrest , kidney damage (which occurs in up to half of patients), rarely liver damage. After fluid resuscitation a condition called compartment s...

Diagnosis and Clinical manifestations of Stress Cardiomyopathy  A sudden temporary weakening of the muscular portion of the heart leads to stress cardiomyopathy, which is one common type of non-ischemic cardiomyopathy . This weakening may be triggered by emotional stress, such as the death of a loved one.  Stress cardiomyopathy leads to one of the common names, broken heart syndrome.   Ventricular rupture, lethal ventricular arrhythmias, and acute heart failure are caused by Stress cardiomyopathy. Clinical Manifestations: The clinical presentation of stress cardiomyopathy is similar to that of an acute coronary syndrome. Symptoms and signs: acute chest pain, dyspnea, and syncope are the most common symptoms of stress cardiomyopathy. Other symptoms include heart failure, tachyarrhythmias, sudden  cardiac arrest  and bradyarrhythmias. Diagnosis: Stress cardiomyopathy most commonly seen in postmenopausal women who present with a suspected ac...

Management of suspected sepsis and septic shock in adults: Sepsis is a clinical and life-threatening condition characterized by systemic inflammation due to infection. The sepsis severity is continuum ranging from sepsis to septic shock .  Signs and symptoms: The signs and symptoms include low body temperature, fever, increased heart rate, confusion, metabolic acidosis. The early sepsis signs are a rapid heart rate, high blood sugar and decreased urination. In case of sepsis, the drop in blood pressure may leads to shock. Some symptoms are also related to specific infection. Severe sepsis causing poor organ function or insufficient blood flow. Cause: Sepsis is caused by an immune response which is triggered by an infection. Most commonly, the infection is known by bacterial, but it may also be from fungi, viruses, or parasites. Common locations for the primary infection include lungs, brain, urinary tract, skin, and abdominal organs. Sepsis is normally ...

Nerve damage caused by diabetes: Diabetic neuropathy is the nerve damage that is caused by diabetes (also known as "diabetes mellitus"), which damages the nerves that send signals from your hands and feet. The nerve damage is due to over time, high blood glucose levels, which also called blood sugar, and high levels of fats, such as triglycerides, in the blood from diabetes.  People who are suffering from diabetes can get different types of nerve damage. Symptoms of nerve damage caused by diabetes: Usually the toes and feet first affected by nerve damage. In this case some people do not feel any symptoms, yet other people can feel symptoms that include: loss of feeling or numbness, pain or burning, tingling. As nerve damage gets worse, symptoms can move from the feet up the legs. Some people may also start to feel symptoms in their hands. The test for nerve damage caused by diabetes known as electromyography . How does nerve damage lead to p...

Lung Cancer Risk Factors Lung cancer is a critical condition in which cells grow or develop uncontrollably in the lungs. Lung cancer is one the most common types of cancer. This condition is mostly possessed by smokers, both active and passive. In the initial stages, there are no signs or symptoms that refer to lung cancer, so that a large number of patients are not getting an early diagnosis. Thus, when detected, the cancer or the growth has spread and is too difficult to be treated. Therefore, it is essential to recognize the symptoms of lung cancer so that the handling can be better and more effective. A risk factor that can affect a person’s chance of getting a disease such as cancer. Different cancers have diverse hazard factors. Some risk factors , like smoking, can be changed. Yet, having a hazard factor, or even several, does not mean that you will get the disease. And some people who get the disease may have few or no known risk factors. Several risk fac...

Facts on Brown Recluse Spider Bite: Most spiders are absolutely harmless to humans. There are more than 20,000 unique types of spiders are present, out of which 60 are capable of biting humans. From which only four are known to be dangerous to people: the brown recluse , the black widow, the hobo or aggressive house spider, and the yellow sac spider. Inside this select group, diseases and the rare report of death is cause only due to the brown recluse and the black widow spider. Brown Recluse Bite Causes: The brown recluse venom is known to be extremely poisonous , much more powerful than that of a poisonous snake. However less illness caused by recluse venom than a rattlesnake bite. The venom of the brown recluse is more toxic to cells and tissues. This venom is normally a collection of enzymes. The destruction of local cell membranes caused when one of the specific enzymes released in to the individuals skin, which disrupts the integrity of tissues and leading ...

Aortic Stenosis Treatment & Management Aortic stenosis is one of the most common valvular disease in the Western world and it is also known as the third most prevalent form of cardiovascular disease which affects mainly people over age 60. Aortic Stenosis occurs when aortic valve narrows, this valve is present between the left ventricle of the heart and the aorta. This reduces or blocks the delivery of blood from the heart to main artery. Drug therapy for the treatment remains ineffective, and the replacement of surgical aortic valve is the only effective long-term treatment. Classic symptoms of aortic stenosis include angina, heart failure, and loss of consciousness. Once symptoms appear, surgical aortic valve replacement should be promptly referred for the patient with severe aortic stenosis , as survival is poor unless outflow obstruction is relieved. Risk factors for aortic stenosis are similar to those of coronary artery disease and include smoking, high bl...

Malignant Hyperthermia: Clinical diagnosis and management  Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is one type of severe reaction and potentially deadly hyper metabolic crisis that occurs as a complication of general anesthesia. Malignant hyperthermia is one type of disorder that can be considered a gene-environment interaction. Signs and symptoms: The signs, which may arise at any time during anesthesia, resulting from hyper metabolism in skeletal muscle. Symptoms of malignant hyperthermia include muscle rigidity, inappropriate tachycardia, high fever, and fast heart rate. Complications can include rhabdomyolysis and high blood potassium. Most of the malignant hyperthermia individuals have few or no symptoms unless they are exposed to a triggering agent. The volatile anesthetic gases, such as halothane, sevoflurane, desflurane, isoflurane, enflurane   are the most common triggering agents or the depolarizing muscle relaxants suxamethonium and decamethonium   ar...