Acute Medicine最新文献

This is a case report of a patient who presented with neck pain and intermittent pyrexia as a manifestation of pseudogout of the neck.

Introduction: Cardiovascular diseases are a substantial burden on healthcare systems, contributing significantly to avoidable hospital admissions. We propose a Cardiology Ambulatory Care Pathway.

Methods: Conducted a 1 month study redirecting admission streams from primary and emergency care, into a Cardiology Ambulatory Care Hub providing triage in Hot Clinic, and access to a Multi-Modal Testing Platform.

Results: 98 patients were referred to the Ambulatory Care Hub, 91 of which avoided admission. 52 patients received care in the cardiology hub, 38 of which required further testing.

Conclusion: We successfully streamlined various service streams, reducing admissions, and improving patient outcomes. Outpatient CTCA, ambulatory ECG, and echocardiography proved instrumental. We project a cost saving of £53,379 per month in bed days (£640,556 annual saving).

Background: the optimal period over which respiratory rate should be measured is uncertain.

Setting: medical ward of low resource Ugandan hospital, Methods: comparison of the first respiratory rates measured on admission over seconds using a smartphone application with measurements over 15 minutes using a piezoelectric device.

Results: There was a poor correlation between respiratory rates measured by the piezoelectric device and rates measured by a smartphone application. Although the discrimination for mortality of piezoelectric respiratory rates were slightly higher than those derived from the application, there were not statistically significant differences.

Conclusion: this study could not demonstrate potential clinical benefits that justify measuring the first respiratory rate after admission over 15 minutes by a device.

This article presents the case of a 25-year-old Moroccan male who contracted Orf disease (Ecthyma contagiosum), a common zoonotic viral infection in sheep and goats. The disease, caused by a parapoxvirus, can be transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals. The patient developed painful lesions on his fingers after interacting with a sheep during the Feast of Sacrifice. Diagnosis was clinically established considering exposure history and lesion characteristics. Treatment involved local antiseptics and 2% fusidic acid cream. The lesions resolved spontaneously over a few weeks without functional impairment.

Recently I had to have a few minutes in my office to regroup after I'd seen a patient. I didn't quite know how to process my feelings. I was feeling ashamed and upset. My patient had been in our waiting room for over 18 hours. He was a bilateral amputee and a wheelchair user. His medical problem was not life threatening and easy to treat but was affecting his arm and so affected his ability to care for himself, hence the need for admission. He was usually normally independent, worked full time, headed up a local charity but now suddenly found himself incredibly vulnerable.

The advent of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to healthcare systems worldwide. As the virus spread across continents, hospitals faced a surge in patient admissions, particularly to intensive care units (ICUs). Understanding the impact of the pandemic on the sickest patients admitted to hospital is crucial for enhancing preparedness for future outbreaks. In this edition of the journal, authors from Denmark report on a register-based national observational study that sheds light on the changes in ICU admission rates and demographic profiles of patients during the initial phase of the pandemic.