Utility of point-of-care synovial lactate to identify septic arthritis in the emergency department.

BACKGROUND: Synovial lactate is a promising biomarker to distinguish septic from aseptic arthritis. If available as a point-of care test, synovial lactate would be rapidly available to aid the emergency provider in clinical decision making. This study assesses the test characteristics of synovial lactate obtained using an EPOC© point-of-care (POC) analyzer to rapidly distinguish septic from aseptic arthritis in the emergency department. METHODS: We enrolled a convenience sample of patients with possible septic arthritis presenting to the emergency department at a large urban academic center between October 2016 and April 2018. Enrolled patients underwent arthrocentesis based on the clinical judgment of the treating provider. We obtained synovial lactate levels (SLL) from the POC device. Standard laboratory analysis, synovial fluid culture, emergency and hospital course, operative procedures, antibiotics, and discharge diagnosis were abstracted from the electronic medical record. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients undergoing forty separate arthrocentesis procedures were enrolled in this study over the two-year period. The sensitivity and specificity of SLL ≥ 5 mmol/L was 0.55 and 0.76 respectively, with +LR 2.3 and -LR 0.6. The sensitivity and specificity of SLL ≥ 10 mmol/L was 0.27 and 0.97 respectively, with +LR 7.9 and -LR 0.8; SLL ≥ 10 mmol/L performed similarly to overall synovial WBC ≥ 50,000/µL by conventional laboratory testing. CONCLUSION: It is feasible to obtain a synovial lactate level using the EPOC© POC device. In our study, POC SLL performs similarly to other markers used to diagnose septic arthritis. Further study with larger sample sizes is warranted.

Pre-hospital qSOFA as a predictor of sepsis and mortality.

BACKGROUND: The quick sequential organ failure assessment score (qSOFA) has been proposed as a simple tool to identify patients with sepsis who are at risk for poor outcomes. Its utility in the pre-hospital setting has not been fully elucidated. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of adult patients arriving by ambulance in September 2016 to an academic emergency department in Fresno, California. The qSOFA score was calculated from pre-hospital vital signs. We investigated its association with sepsis, ED diagnosis of infection, and mortality. RESULTS: Of 2292 adult medical patients transported by ambulance during the study period, the sensitivity of qSOFA for sepsis and in-hospital mortality were 42.9% and 40.6%, respectively. Specificity of qSOFA for sepsis and mortality were 93.8% and 91.9%, respectively. Of those with an ED diagnosis of infection compared to all patients, qSOFA was more specific but less sensitive for sepsis. Increasing qSOFA score was associated with a discharge diagnosis of sepsis (OR 4.21, 95% CI 3.41-5.21, p < 0.001), in-hospital mortality (OR 3.30, 95% CI 2.28-4.78, p < 0.001), and ED diagnosis of infection (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.18-1.58, p < 0.001). Higher qSOFA score was associated with triage to a higher acuity zone and longer hospital and ICU length of stay, but not up-triage during ED stay. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-hospital qSOFA is specific, but poorly sensitive, for sepsis and sepsis outcomes, especially among patients with an ED diagnosis of infection. Higher qSOFA score was associated with worse outcomes.

Emergency Medical Services and Remote Medical Oversight in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, 2011-2013.

INTRODUCTION: The University of California San Francisco Fresno Department of Emergency Medicine provides base hospital support for the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (SEKI) emergency medical services (EMS) system. This descriptive epidemiologic study reports reasons the park EMS system is used and interventions provided, detailing the nature of patient encounters, type and frequency of injuries and interventions, reasons for base hospital contact, and patient dispositions. METHODS: Patient charts for all EMS encounters in SEKI from 2011 to 2013 were included, and relevant data were extracted by a single reviewer. RESULTS: Of the 704 charts reviewed, 570 (81%) were frontcountry patient encounters (within 1.6 km [1 mi] of a paved road); 100 (14%) were backcountry; and 34 (5%) occurred in undefined locations. Regarding sex and age, 58% of patients were men; 22% were younger than 18 y, and 15% were 65 y or older. More than 80% of calls occurred during the months of June through August. The most common complaints were extremity trauma (24%), torso trauma (13%), and lacerations (9%). Almost 50% of patients were transferred to a higher level of care. Medications were administered to 37% of patients, with oxygen being the most common. Procedures were performed 49% of the time, primarily intravenous access and splinting. Base hospital contact was made 38% of the time, most commonly (54%) for advice regarding disposition. CONCLUSIONS: SEKI EMS providers encounter a wide variety of patients in various settings, including the backcountry. Resource allocation, training, and protocol development should be tailored to meet their needs.

Analysis of intraosseous blood samples using an EPOC point of care analyzer during resuscitation.

BACKGROUND: In the early phases of resuscitation in a critically ill patient, especially those in cardiac arrest, intravenous (IV) access can be difficult to obtain. Intraosseous (IO) access is often used in these critical situations to allow medication administration. When no IV access is available, it is difficult to obtain blood for point of care analysis, yet this information can be crucial in directing the resuscitation. We hypothesized that IO samples may be used with a point of care device to obtain useful information when seconds really do matter. METHODS: Patients presenting to the emergency department requiring resuscitation and IO placement were prospectively enrolled in a convenience sample. 17 patients were enrolled. IO and IV samples obtained within five minutes of one another were analyzed using separate EPOC® point of care analyzers. Analytes were compared using Bland Altman Plots and intraclass correlation coefficients. RESULTS: In this analysis of convenience sampled critically ill patients, the EPOC® point of care analyzer provided results from IO samples. IO and IV samples were most comparable for pH, bicarbonate, sodium and base excess, and potentially for lactic acid; single outliers for bicarbonate, sodium and base excess were observed. Intraclass correlation coefficients were excellent for sodium and reasonable for pH, pO2, bicarbonate, and glucose. Correlations for other variables measured by the EPOC® analyzer were not as robust. CONCLUSION: IO samples can be used with a bedside point of care analyzer to rapidly obtain certain laboratory information during resuscitations when IV access is difficult.

Racial differences in receiving morphine among prehospital patients with blunt trauma.

BACKGROUND: Pain management is an important part of prehospital care, yet few studies have addressed the effects of age, sex, race, or pain severity on prehospital pain management. OBJECTIVES: To examine the association of sex, age, race, and pain severity with analgesia administration for blunt trauma in the prehospital setting. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, we used the automated registry of a large urban Emergency Medical Services agency to identify records of all patients transported for blunt trauma injuries between February 1 and November 1, 2009. We used bivariable and multivariable analyses with logistic regression models to determine the relationship between analgesia administration and patient sex, race, age, pain score on a pain scale, and time under prehospital care. RESULTS: We identified 6398 blunt trauma cases. There were 516 patients (8%) who received analgesia overall; among patients for whom a pain scale was recorded, 25% received analgesia. By multivariable analysis, adjusting for race, sex, age, time with patient, and pain score, African-American and Hispanic patients were less likely than Caucasian patients to receive analgesia. Pain score and prehospital time were both significant predictors of analgesia administration, with higher pain score and longer prehospital time associated with increased administration of pain medication. Neither sex nor age was a significant predictor of analgesia administration in the regression analysis. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that Caucasians are more likely than African-Americans or Hispanics to receive prehospital analgesia for blunt trauma injuries. In addition, patients with whom paramedics spend more time and for whom a pain score is recorded are more likely to receive analgesia.

Prehospital Traction Splint Use in Midthigh Trauma Patients.

CONTEXT: Traction splint (TS) use during emergency medical system transport has been theorized to relieve pain, limit continued injury from loose bone fragments, and decrease potential bleeding space in the injured thigh. AIMS: This study aimed to evaluate the benefit of prehospital TS (PTS) application, using data from the trauma registry at a large Level 1 trauma center. METHODS: A retrospective review of patients from the NTRACS© and Trauma One© registry at an American College of Surgeons-verified Level 1 trauma center was conducted. All patients treated between the years 2001 and 2011 who were assigned a diagnosis International Classification of Diseases-9 code of 821.01 (closed fracture of shaft and femur) and 821.11 (open fracture of shaft and femur) (femur fracture [FF]) were included. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: All categorical variables between the first groups were compared using Pearson's Chi-square and Fisher's exact test analysis. Comparisons were made using unpaired t-tests and Mann-Whitney test or Kruskal-Wallis one-way ANOVA, followed by Dunn's post hoc pairwise comparisons. RESULTS: Patients with a TS and those without indicated that the patients with no traction split (NTS) had sustained injuries beyond a FF (14.43 ± 9.740 vs. 18.59 ± 12.993, P < 0.001). The three groups of TS placement (PTS, hospital, and NTS) only used patients with Injury Severity Score < 9 (n = 218). Hospital length of stay (LOS) was found to be significant (P = 0.05) between the patients who received a hospital TS (3.10 ± 1.709) and NTS (5.42 ± 5.144). CONCLUSION: PTS can lower LOS and mortality. Further research is needed to confirm these findings.

Pediatric Tape: Accuracy and Medication Delivery in the National Park Service.

INTRODUCTION: The objective is to evaluate the accuracy of medication dosing and the time to medication administration in the prehospital setting using a novel length-based pediatric emergency resuscitation tape. METHODS: This study was a two-period, two-treatment crossover trial using simulated pediatric patients in the prehospital setting. Each participant was presented with two emergent scenarios; participants were randomized to which case they encountered first, and to which case used the National Park Service (NPS) emergency medical services (EMS) length-based pediatric emergency resuscitation tape. In the control (without tape) case, providers used standard methods to determine medication dosing (e.g. asking parents to estimate the patient's weight); in the intervention (with tape) case, they used the NPS EMS length-based pediatric emergency resuscitation tape. Each scenario required dosing two medications (Case 1 [febrile seizure] required midazolam and acetaminophen; Case 2 [anaphylactic reaction] required epinephrine and diphenhydramine). Twenty NPS EMS providers, trained at the Parkmedic/Advanced Emergency Medical Technician level, served as study participants. RESULTS: The only medication errors that occurred were in the control (no tape) group (without tape: 5 vs. with tape: 0, p=0.024). Time to determination of medication dose was significantly shorter in the intervention (with tape) group than the control (without tape) group, for three of the four medications used. In case 1, time to both midazolam and acetaminophen was significantly faster in the intervention (with tape) group (midazolam: 8.3 vs. 28.9 seconds, p=0.005; acetaminophen: 28.6 seconds vs. 50.6 seconds, p=0.036). In case 2, time to epinephrine did not differ (23.3 seconds vs. 22.9 seconds, p=0.96), while time to diphenhydramine was significantly shorter in the intervention (with tape) group (13 seconds vs. 37.5 seconds, p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Use of a length-based pediatric emergency resuscitation tape in the prehospital setting was associated with significantly fewer dosing errors and faster time-to-medication administration in simulated pediatric emergencies. Further research in a clinical field setting to prospectively confirm these findings is needed.

Pitfalls in the evaluation of shortness of breath.

This article illustrates the challenges practitioners face evaluating shortness of breath, a common emergency department complaint. Through a series of patient encounters, pitfalls in the evaluation of shortness of breath are reviewed and discussed.