Secondary asthma prevention measures are not adequately addressed prior to emergency department discharge!

BACKGROUND: Exacerbations of acute asthma are frequent presentations to the Emergency Department (ED) and contribute to ED overcrowding and healthcare cost. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether ED clinicians are implementing secondary asthma prevention measures prior to discharging patients after an acute asthma exacerbation and also to determine whether ED clinicians are able to correctly demonstrate how to use an asthma metered dose inhaler (MDI) device. METHODS: Consenting doctors employed at four EDs situated in the Gauteng province of South Africa were asked to complete a questionnaire and thereafter demonstrate the technique of using an MDI device. Collected data was presented using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Eighty-six doctors were included in the study. Of these, 18 (20.9%) routinely checked that inhaler technique was correct, 50 (58.1%) routinely enquired regarding adherence to their asthma treatment, 8 (9.3%) routinely informed patients of the side effects of asthma medication, 16 (18.6%) routinely provided patients with a written asthma action plan, 7 (8.1%) routinely evaluated for the presence of concurrent allergic rhinitis and 53 (61.6%) routinely counselled patients regarding smoking cessation. With regards to correctly demonstrating how to use an MDI device, only 23 (26.74%) physician participants performed all eight steps correctly. CONCLUSION: This study indicates that secondary asthma prevention measures are not adequately addressed by clinicians prior to discharging patients from the ED after an acute asthma attack. It is recommended that ED clinicians are educated with regards to the importance of these measures.

Near-infrared spectroscopy in the diagnosis of testicular torsion: valuable modality or waste of valuable time? A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Testicular torsion (TT) is a urological emergency that affects one in 4000 males younger than 25 years. Delays in the management of TT may result in testicular ischaemia, testicular necrosis, orchidectomy and infertility. This review assesses the validity of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as a diagnostic tool in the assessment and diagnosis of TT. METHODS: A systematic search of Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, EMBASE, Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases was performed in January 2019 using specific search terms. Selected studies were ranked and evaluated using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 tool. RESULTS: A total of nine studies that included 253 subjects (88 animals and 165 humans) with a mean sample size of 28.1 (standard deviation 40.8) subjects were included. The mean difference in testicular tissue oxygen saturation between torsed and non-torsed testes (Δ%StO2 ) were 45%, 42% (±5%), 26% and 5-18% in four animal studies and 2.0%, 3.0%, 6.7%, 6.8% and 23.0% in five human studies. The tissue oxygen saturation difference between contralateral healthy testes (controls) ranged from 1% to 10% in the five studies that alluded to this. CONCLUSION: The current body of evidence does not support the use of NIRS in the work-up of TT. Well-designed clinical trials with large patient samples are required to determine whether NIRS may have some future role as a diagnostic modality in TT.