Ileus and small bowel obstruction in an emergency department observation unit: are there outcome predictors?

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of our study was to describe the evaluation and outcome of patients with ileus and bowel obstruction admitted to an emergency department (ED) observation unit (OU) and to identify predictors of successful management for such patients. METHODS: We performed a retrospective chart review of 129 patients admitted to a university-affiliated, urban, tertiary hospital ED OU from January 1999 through November 2004. Inclusion criteria were all adult patients admitted to the OU with an ED diagnosis of ileus, partial small bowel obstruction, or small bowel obstruction, and electronic medical records available for review. The following variables were examined: ED diagnosis, history of similar admission, number of prior abdominal surgeries, surgery in the month before, administration of opioid analgesia at any time after presentation, radiographs demonstrating air-fluid levels or dilated loops of small bowel, hypokalemia, use of nasogastric decompression, and surgical consultation. RESULTS: Treatment failure, defined as hospital admission from the OU, occurred in 65 (50.4%) of 129 patients. Only the use of a nasogastric tube was associated with OU failure (21% discharged versus 79% requiring admission, P = 0.0004; odds ratio, 5.294; confidence interval, 1.982-14.14). CONCLUSION: Half of the patients admitted to our ED OU with ileus or varying degrees of small bowel obstruction required hospital admission. The requirement of a nasogastric tube in such patients was associated with a greater rate of observation unit failure.

A preschool-age child with first-time seizure and ataxia.

We present a case of a 4-year-old previously healthy child who had a possible first-time seizure at home, and upon a second Emergency Department evaluation was found to have gross cerebellar ataxia suggestive of acute stroke. Initial computed tomography scan and metabolic work-up were unrevealing. Subsequent neuroimaging demonstrated stroke in the left medulla and cerebellum secondary to left vertebral artery dissection. Cervical artery dissection may cause up to 20% of strokes in childhood and adolescence. Unlike typical adult presentations, antecedent or concurrent head and neck pain occurs less often in pediatric dissections. Symptoms of posterior circulation ischemia resulting from vertebral artery dissection may include vertigo, vomiting, ataxia, dysarthria, and seizure. Willingness to utilize newer, non-invasive imaging modalities may lead to earlier recognition of cervical artery dissection when patients have prodromal symptoms or episodes of transient ischemia. Vertebral artery dissection should be included in the differential diagnosis when evaluating children with first time seizure, headache, or neck pain.