Evaluation of an Intravenous Acetaminophen Protocol in the Emergency Department.

BACKGROUND: Acute pain is a leading reason for Emergency Department (ED) evaluation, accounting for nearly half of all ED visits. Therefore, providing effective non-opioid analgesics in the ED is critical. Oral acetaminophen (APAP) is commonly administered in the ED but is limited to patients tolerating oral intake. Intravenous (IV) APAP provides significant pain reduction parenterally. The purpose of this quality assessment project was to evaluate the frequency of opioid use in patients receiving IV APAP, the safety of IV APAP, and compliance with an ED IV APAP protocol. METHODS: This study included all patients who received IV APAP in the ED of a tertiary care, level I trauma center, during a three-month period. The protocol required ED patients to be NPO (nil per os), 18 years or older, and administered with a single 1000 mg dose. The adverse reactions within 24 hours post-IV APAP, ED length of stay (LOS), and opioid administration within four hours post-IV APAP were assessed. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients received IV APAP. All patients received a 1000 mg dose. One patient received more than one dose, but this patient had a 22-hour ED LOS. Two patients received oral medications within one hour of IV APAP (one received an antacid, and the other received carbamazepine and lamotrigine). An opioid was administered to 22 of the 94 (23.4%) patients during the four-hour protocol period. There were no reports of adverse reactions. CONCLUSIONS: The results show excellent compliance with the protocol. IV APAP was safe and well-tolerated. Notably, most patients did not receive an opioid within four hours of IV APAP. IV APAP can be safely and effectively utilized as an analgesic and lessen ED opioid use.

Administration of andexanet alfa for traumatic intracranial hemorrhage in the setting of massive apixaban overdose: A case report.

PURPOSE: Apixaban is a direct-acting oral anticoagulant that selectively inhibits factor Xa. Reversal strategies utilized to treat factor Xa inhibitor-associated bleeding include andexanet alfa, prothrombin complex -concentrate (PCC), and activated PCC (aPCC). The optimal treatment of traumatic intracranial hemorrhage in the setting of an apixaban overdose is unknown. SUMMARY: This case report describes a 69-year-old female who initially presented to an emergency department at a community hospital due to a ground-level fall with traumatic intracranial hemorrhage. The patient reportedly ingested apixaban 275 mg, carvedilol 250 mg, atorvastatin 1,200 mg, and unknown amounts of amlodipine and ethanol. Anti-inhibitor coagulant complex, an aPCC, was administered approximately 3 hours after presentation. Initial thromboelastography performed approximately 4 hours after presentation showed a prolonged reaction time of 16.8 minutes. Ongoing imaging and evidence of coagulopathy prompted repeated aPCC administration to a cumulative dose of approximately 100 U/kg. The patient underwent craniotomy with hematoma evacuation. Postoperative imaging showed expansion of the existing intracranial hemorrhage and new areas of hemorrhage. Andexanet alfa was administered approximately 18 hours after presentation, followed by repeat craniotomy with evacuation of the hematoma. No further expansion of the intracranial hemorrhage was observed, and the reaction time on thromboelastography was normalized at 6.3 minutes. CONCLUSION: This case suggests that andexanet alfa may have a role in the management of traumatic hemorrhage in the setting of an acute massive apixaban overdose. Use of andexanet alfa, PCC, and aPCC in this context requires further research.

Scoping review of disease-modifying effect of drugs in experimental epilepsy.

Objective: Epilepsy affects ~50 million people worldwide causing significant medical, financial, and sociologic concerns for affected patients and their families. To date, treatment of epilepsy is primarily symptomatic management because few effective preventative or disease-modifying interventions exist. However, recent research has identified neurobiological mechanisms of epileptogenesis, providing new pharmacologic targets to investigate. The current scientific evidence remains scattered across multiple studies using different model and experimental designs. The review compiles different models of anti-epileptogenic investigation and highlights specific compounds with potential epileptogenesis-modifying experimental drugs. It provides a platform for standardization of future epilepsy research to allow a more robust compound analysis of compounds with potential for epilepsy prevention. Methods: PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Web of Science were searched from 2007 to 2021. Studies with murine models of epileptogenesis and explicitly detailed experimental procedures were included in the scoping review. In total, 51 articles were selected from 14,983 and then grouped by five core variables: (1) seizure frequency, (2) seizure severity, (3) spontaneous recurrent seizures (SRS), (4) seizure duration, and (5) mossy fiber sprouting (MFS). The variables were differentiated based on experimental models including methods of seizure induction, treatment schedule and timeline of data collection. Data was categorized by the five core variables and analyzed by converting original treatment values to units of percent of its respective control. Results: Discrepancies in current epileptogenesis models significantly complicate inter-study comparison of potential anti-epileptogenic interventions. With our analysis, many compounds showed a potential to reduce epileptogenic characteristics defined by the five core variables. WIN55,212-2, aspirin, rapamycin, 1400W, and LEV + BQ788 were identified compounds with the potential of effective anti-epileptic properties. Significance: Our review highlights the need for consistent methodology in epilepsy research and provides a novel approach for future research. Inconsistent experimental designs hinder study comparison, slowing the progression of treatments for epilepsy. If the research community can optimize and standardize parameters such as methods of seizure induction, administration schedule, sampling time, and aniMal models, more robust meta-analysis and collaborative research would follow. Additionally, some compounds such as rapamycin, WIN 55,212-2, aspirin, 1400W, and LEV + BQ788 showed anti-epileptogenic modulation across multiple variables. We believe they warrant further study both individually and synergistically.