Noninvasive Ventilation for Preoxygenation during Emergency Intubation.

BACKGROUND: Among critically ill adults undergoing tracheal intubation, hypoxemia increases the risk of cardiac arrest and death. The effect of preoxygenation with noninvasive ventilation, as compared with preoxygenation with an oxygen mask, on the incidence of hypoxemia during tracheal intubation is uncertain. METHODS: In a multicenter, randomized trial conducted at 24 emergency departments and intensive care units in the United States, we randomly assigned critically ill adults (age, ≥18 years) undergoing tracheal intubation to receive preoxygenation with either noninvasive ventilation or an oxygen mask. The primary outcome was hypoxemia during intubation, defined by an oxygen saturation of less than 85% during the interval between induction of anesthesia and 2 minutes after tracheal intubation. RESULTS: Among the 1301 patients enrolled, hypoxemia occurred in 57 of 624 patients (9.1%) in the noninvasive-ventilation group and in 118 of 637 patients (18.5%) in the oxygen-mask group (difference, -9.4 percentage points; 95% confidence interval [CI], -13.2 to -5.6; P<0.001). Cardiac arrest occurred in 1 patient (0.2%) in the noninvasive-ventilation group and in 7 patients (1.1%) in the oxygen-mask group (difference, -0.9 percentage points; 95% CI, -1.8 to -0.1). Aspiration occurred in 6 patients (0.9%) in the noninvasive-ventilation group and in 9 patients (1.4%) in the oxygen-mask group (difference, -0.4 percentage points; 95% CI, -1.6 to 0.7). CONCLUSIONS: Among critically ill adults undergoing tracheal intubation, preoxygenation with noninvasive ventilation resulted in a lower incidence of hypoxemia during intubation than preoxygenation with an oxygen mask. (Funded by the U.S. Department of Defense; PREOXI ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05267652.).

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and governor mandated stay at home order on emergency department super utilizers.

BACKGROUND: Despite the trend of rising Emergency Department (ED) visits over the past decade, researchers have observed drastic declines in number of ED visits due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and governor mandated Stay at Home Order on ED super utilizers. METHODS: This was a retrospective chart review of patients presenting to the 12 emergency departments of the Franciscan Mission of Our Lady Hospital System in Louisiana between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2020. Patients who were 18 years of age or older and had four ED visits within a one-year period (2018, 2019, or 2020) were classified as super-utilizers. We examined number and category of visits for the baseline period (January 2018 - March 2020), the governor's Stay at Home Order, and the subsequent Reopening Phases through December 31, 2020. RESULTS: The number of visits by super utilizers decreased by over 16% when the Stay at Home Order was issued. The average number of visits per week rose from 1010.63 during the Stay at Home Order to 1198.09 after the Stay at Home Order was lifted, but they did not return to Pre-COVID levels of approximately 1400 visits per week in 2018 and 2019. When categories of visits were examined, this trend was found for emergent visits (p < 0.001) and visits related to injuries (p < 0.001). Non-emergent visits declined during the Stay at Home Order compared to the baseline period (p < 0.001), and did not increase significantly during reopening compared to the Stay at Home Order (p = 0.87). There were no changes in number of visits for psychiatric purposes, alcohol use, or drug use during the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: Significant declines in emergent visits raise concerns that individuals who needed ED treatment did not seek it due to COVID-19. However, the finding that super utilizers with non-emergent visits continued to visit the ED less after the Stay at Home Order was lifted raises questions for future research that may inform policy and interventions for inappropriate ED use.

Delayed Presentation of a Carotid Artery Dissection Following Blunt Trauma in a Young Adult with Minimal Risk Factors.

A 22-year-old woman presented to the emergency department (ED) after suffering injuries as a restrained driver in a head-on motor vehicle accident. Upon presentation to the ED, her Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) was 15. A computed tomography (CT) of the head and neck was negative. She was taken to surgery for orthopedic injuries. Recovery from general anesthesia was somewhat prolonged due to somnolence. Roughly two hours after transfer, her family noticed that she was not moving her left arm. Trauma staff noted she had a new left hemiparesis. She was promptly taken for a repeat head CT which showed a dense area of ischemia in her right cerebral hemisphere, in the distribution of the right middle cerebral artery (MCA). A CT angiogram of the head and neck revealed a large dissection of the right carotid artery below the level of C2-C3, complete occlusion of the right internal carotid artery beginning 2 cm superior to the bifurcation, and developing cerebral edema with subsequent leftward shift.

Protocol to Clear Cervical Spine Injuries in Pediatric Trauma Patients.

In order to minimize the amount of ionizing radiation to which young trauma patients are subjected, a cervical spine clearance project was implemented. The aim was to increase the number of pediatric trauma patients clinically cleared and decrease the number of such patients undergoing cervical spine CT imaging when they met clinical clearance criteria. To accomplish the goals, a brief education program about the epidemiology of pediatric cervical spine injuries, radiation exposure risks, and safe and effective means available for cervical spine clearance to pediatric trauma providers was delivered. This was made possible through funds awarded by the AHRA & Toshiba Putting Patients First grant. Mean knowledge scores after the program increased significantly for all groups of providers. This study showed that after implementation of the cervical spine clinical clearance protocol, there was an increase of 35.7% in the number of patients who were clinically cleared based on the protocol's criteria. Additionally, a 24%. decrease was seen in the number of pediatric patients undergoing CT scans of the cervical spine when they met criteria for clinical clearance of the cervical spine.

Retrospective identification of infection in the emergency department: A significant challenge in sepsis clinical trials.

BACKGROUND: This study examined three methods for retrospectively identifying infection in emergency department (ED) patients: modified objective definitions of infection (MODI) from the CDC/NHSN, physician adjudication determination of infection, and ED treating physician behavior. METHODS: This study used a subset of data from a prospective sepsis trial. We used Fleiss's Kappa to compare agreement between two physicians retrospectively adjudicating infection based on the patient's medical record, modified infection definition from the CDC/NHSN, and ED treating physician behavior. RESULTS: Overall, there was similar agreement between physician adjudication of infection and MODI criteria (Kappa=0.59) compared to having two physicians independently identify infection through retrospective chart review (Kappa=0.58). ED treating physician behavior was a poorer proxy for infection when compared to the MODI criteria (0.41) and physician adjudication (Kappa = 0.50). CONCLUSIONS: Retrospective identification of infection poses a significant challenge in sepsis clinical trials. Using modified definitions of infection provides a standardized, less time consuming, and equally effective means of identifying infection compared to having multiple physicians adjudicate a patient's chart.

Assessment of a Cellular Host Response Test as a Sepsis Diagnostic for Those With Suspected Infection in the Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVES: Sepsis is a common cause of morbidity and mortality. A reliable, rapid, and early indicator can help improve efficiency of care and outcomes. To assess the IntelliSep test, a novel in vitro diagnostic that quantifies the state of immune activation by measuring the biophysical properties of leukocytes, as a rapid diagnostic for sepsis and a measure of severity of illness, as defined by Sequential Organ Failure Assessment and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation-II scores and the need for hospitalization. DESIGN SETTING SUBJECTS: Adult patients presenting to two emergency departments in Baton Rouge, LA, with signs of infection (two of four systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria, with at least one being aberration of temperature or WBC count) or suspicion of infection (a clinician order for culture of a body fluid), were prospectively enrolled. Sepsis status, per Sepsis-3 criteria, was determined through a 3-tiered retrospective and blinded adjudication process consisting of objective review, site-level clinician review, and final determination by independent physician adjudicators. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Of 266 patients in the final analysis, those with sepsis had higher IntelliSep Index (median = 6.9; interquartile range, 6.1-7.6) than those adjudicated as not septic (median = 4.7; interquartile range, 3.7-5.9; p < 0.001), with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.89 and 0.83 when compared with unanimous and forced adjudication standards, respectively. Patients with higher IntelliSep Index had higher Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (3 [interquartile range, 1-5] vs 1 [interquartile range, 0-2]; p < 0.001) and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation-II (7 [interquartile range, 3.5-11.5] vs 5 [interquartile range, 2-9]; p < 0.05) and were more likely to be admitted to the hospital (83.6% vs 48.3%; p < 0.001) compared with those with lower IntelliSep Index. CONCLUSIONS: In patients presenting to the emergency department with signs or suspicion of infection, the IntelliSep Index is a promising tool for the rapid diagnosis and risk stratification for sepsis.