Can Emergency Physicians Diagnose Cirrhosis by Ultrasound: A Prospective Single-Arm Educational Intervention.

Background and purpose Liver cirrhosis is common, and timely diagnosis of decompensated cirrhosis may impact acute care and resuscitation. Point-of-care ultrasound is a core competency of US emergency medicine training and is increasingly available in many acute care settings, including those where usual diagnostic modalities of cirrhosis may not be available. Only a few works of literature exist that evaluate the ultrasound diagnosis of cirrhosis and decompensated cirrhosis by emergency physicians (EPs). We aim to evaluate whether EPs can diagnose cirrhosis by ultrasound after a brief educational intervention and determine the accuracy of EP-interpreted ultrasound compared to the radiology-interpreted ultrasound as a gold standard. Methods This single-center prospective single-arm educational intervention evaluated the accuracy of EPs diagnosing cirrhosis and decompensated cirrhosis on ultrasound before and after a short educational intervention. Responses were paired across the three assessments, and paired sample t-tests were performed. Sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratios were calculated using attending radiology-interpreted ultrasounds as the gold standard. Results EPs scored a mean of 16% higher on a delayed knowledge assessment one month after the educational intervention than on the pre-intervention assessment. EP-interpreted ultrasound revealed a sensitivity of 0.90, specificity of 0.71, positive likelihood ratio of 3.08, and negative likelihood ratio of 0.14 compared to radiology-interpreted ultrasound. The sensitivity of our cohort was 0.98 for decompensated cirrhosis. Conclusions After a brief educational intervention, EPs can significantly increase their sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing cirrhosis using ultrasound. EPs were particularly sensitive in their diagnosis of decompensated cirrhosis.

Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy Following Traumatic Hand Amputation: A Case Report.

INTRODUCTION: Takotsubo or stress cardiomyopathy is a syndrome of transient left ventricular systolic dysfunction seen in the absence of obstructive coronary artery disease. CASE REPORT: We describe a case of stress cardiomyopathy diagnosed in the emergency department (ED) using point-of-care ultrasound associated with traumatic hand amputation. The patient suffered a near-complete amputation of the right hand while using a circular saw, subsequently complicated by brief cardiac arrest with rapid return of spontaneous circulation. Point-of-care ultrasonography in the ED revealed the classic findings of takotsubo cardiomyopathy, including apical ballooning of the left ventricle and hyperkinesis of the basal walls with a severely reduced ejection fraction. After formalization of the amputation and cardiovascular evaluation, the patient was discharged from the hospital in stable condition 10 days later. CONCLUSION: Emergency physicians should be aware of the possibility of stress cardiomyopathy as a cause for acute decompensation, even in isolated extremity trauma.

Does QBank participation impact in-training examination performance?

BACKGROUND: Performance on the annual in-training examination (ITE) for emergency medicine (EM) residents has been shown to correlate with performance on the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) qualifying examination. As such, significant planning is often committed to ITE preparation, from an individual resident and a residency program perspective. Online specialty-specific question banks (QBanks) represent a popular medium for ITE preparation; however, the impact of QBanks on ITE performance is unclear. We sought to assess the impact of QBank participation on EM resident ITE performance. METHODS: ITE and QBank performance results were collated over 2 academic years, 2019 and 2020, from a 3-year EM residency program. The QBank was provided as a self-study option in 2019 and incorporated as a mandatory component of the curriculum in 2020. ITE raw scores and percentile rank for training level scores were compared with performance on the QBank, including QBank average performance score as well as number of QBank questions completed. The Pearson correlation coefficient was used to measure association between ITE performance and QBank correlates. Additional descriptive demographics, to include gender, PGY level, and USMLE step 1 and 2 scores were also considered. RESULTS: Sixty-two sets (30 residents in 2019, 32 residents in 2020) of ITE performance data and QBank correlates were included. Overall, raw ITE scores and number of QBank questions completed were found to have a significant, positive correlation, (r(60) = 0.34, p < 0.05); correlation was stronger for 2019 (r[28] = 0.39, p < 0.05) compared to 2020 (r[30] =0.25, p = 0.16). Overall, ITE percentile rank for training level scores were also found to have a significant, positive correlation with number of QBank questions completed (r(60) = 0.35, p < 0.05); correlation was again stronger for 2019 (r(28) = 0.42, p < 0.05) compared to 2020 (r(30) = 0.29, p = 0.12). Finally, ITE percentile rank for training level correlated positively with QBank average performance (as a percentage), albeit weakly, and was not found to be significant overall (r[60] = 0.20, p = 0.16); in this instance, 2019 did not show a correlation (r[28] =0.12, p = 0.54); however, 2020 did (r[30] =0.55, p < 0.05). Academic year 2020 raw ITE scores also demonstrated a significant correlation with QBank average performance (r[30] = 0.66, p < 0.0001) while 2019 did not (r[28] = 0.08, p = 0.68). CONCLUSION: Participation and engagement in a QBank are associated with improved EM resident performance on the ABEM ITE. Utilization of a QBank may be an effective mode of ITE preparation for EM residents.

Evaluation of a novel handheld point-of-care ultrasound device in an African emergency department.

BACKGROUND: Many point-of-care ultrasound devices are now "pocket-sized" or handheld, allowing easy transport during travel and facilitating use in crowded spaces or in austere low-resource settings. Concerns remain about their durability, image quality, and clinical utility in those environments. METHOD: Five emergency physicians with training in point-of-care ultrasound employed the Butterfly iQ, a novel handheld ultrasound device, in routine clinical care in a busy, high-acuity African emergency department over a period of 10 weeks. We retrospectively evaluated the performance of the Butterfly iQ from the perspectives of both the clinicians using the device and expert ultrasound faculty reviewing the images. RESULTS: We found advantages of the Butterfly iQ in a high-acuity African emergency department include its use of a single probe for multiple functions, small size, ease of transport, relatively low cost, and good image quality in most functions. Disadvantages include large probe footprint, lower, though still adequate, cardiac imaging quality, frequent overheating, and reliance on internet-based cloud storage, but these were surmountable. We also report a wide variety of patient presentations, pathology, and procedures to which the device was used. CONCLUSION: We conclude the Butterfly iQ is an effective, though imperfect, point-of-care ultrasound device in a low-resource emergency setting. We will continue to employ the device in clinical emergency care and teaching in this setting.

Clinical ultrasonography in patients who inject drugs (the CUPID protocol): an illustrated case series.

In 2017, there were ≈47,600 opioid overdose-related deaths in the United States. US emergency department (ED) visits for suspected opioid overdose increased by 30% between July 2016 and September 2017.2 The current US opioid epidemic makes it critical for emergency physicians to be aware of common and uncommon infectious and non-infectious complications of injection drug use. Point-of-care ultrasound has become a widely available, non-invasive diagnostic tool in EDs across the United States and worldwide. The increasing population of injection drug use patients is at risk for serious morbidity and mortality from an array of disease states amenable to ultrasound-based diagnosis. We propose a protocol for clinical ultrasonography in patients who inject drugs (the CUPID protocol), a focused, 3-system point-of-care ultrasound approach emphasizing cardiovascular, thoracic, and musculoskeletal imaging. The protocol is a screening tool, designed to detect high risk infectious and noninfectious complications of injection drug use.

Ruptured Ectopic Pregnancy in the Presence of an Intrauterine Device.

Ruptured ectopic pregnancy is the leading cause of first trimester maternal mortality. The diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy should always be suspected in patients with abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding or syncope. While the use of an intrauterine device (IUD) markedly reduces the incidence of intrauterine pregnancy, it does not confer equal protection from the risk of ectopic pregnancy. In this report we discuss the case of a female patient who presented with a ruptured ectopic pregnancy and hemoperitoneum despite a correctly positioned IUD.

Risk Factors Associated with Reoperation for Bleeding following Liver Transplantation.

Introduction. This study's objective was to identify risk factors associated with reoperation for bleeding following liver transplantation (LTx). Methods. A retrospective study was performed at a single institution between 2001 and 2012. Operative reports were used to identify patients who underwent reoperation for bleeding within 2 weeks following LTx (operations for nonbleeding etiologies were excluded). Results. Reoperation for bleeding was observed in 101/928 (10.8%) of LTx patients. The following characteristics were associated with reoperation on multivariable analysis: recipient MELD score (OR 1.06/MELD unit, 95% CI 1.03, 1.09), number of platelets transfused (OR 0.73/platelet unit, 95% CI 0.58, 0.91), and aminocaproic acid utilization (OR 0.46, 95% CI 0.27, 0.80). LTx patients who underwent reoperation for bleeding had a longer ICU stay (5 days ± 7 versus 2 days ± 3, P < 0.001) and hospitalization (18 days ± 9 versus 10 days ± 18, P < 0.001). The risk of death increased in patients who underwent reoperation for bleeding (HR 1.89, 95% CI 1.26, 2.85). Conclusion. Reoperation for bleeding following LTx was associated with increased resource utilization and recipient mortality. A lower threshold for intraoperative platelet transfusion and antifibrinolytics, especially in patients with high lab-MELD score, may decrease the incidence of reoperation for bleeding following LTx.