Today’s episode is talking about how to approach testicular pain in the ED. You need to know how to approach this chief complaint because if you don’t workup the patient correctly, they can lose their future fertility and possibly their testicle. We’ll review how to take a good history and do a rapid focused exam to make sure that we catch all those patients with torsion and don’t delay their treatment.
This article was published recently in the Annals of Emergency Medicine and it is causing some clinicians to radically change their practice. The study looked at patients who are on oral anticoagulants such as coumadin (warfarin) who sustain minor head injuries. The study examined the value of admitting these patients for 24 hour observation with a repeat head CT at the 24 hour mark. The study found a small proportion of patients with delayed bleeding but how much should we care about this phenomenon? We see these patients a lot- is it worth the cost to admit all of them for observation and a repeat head CT? Read the article, listen to the podcast, and then decide for yourself.
Management of Minor Head Injury in Patients Receiving Oral Anticoagulant Therapy: A Prospective Study of a 24-Hour Observation Protocol
Vincenzo, et al. Annals of Emergency Medicine June 2012. 59(6) 451-455.
Free full text PDF direct download
EM Basic Essential Evidence podcast- Annals of EM Minor head injury article
Hey everybody
Just a quick note to say that I just fixed an issue with the hyperkalemia episode on the EM Basic app. I goofed and the way I posted the episode was causing it to come up in the app as a “text post” without the episode audio. It is fixed now and should be working- let me know if you are having any other issues with the app.
Steve
Hyperkalemia (high serum potassium) can be one of the most serious electrolyte disorders that we treat in the ED. We’ll review how to interpret hyperkalemia in light of the patient’s clinical condition, how to rapidly evaluate a patient with hyperkalemia and how to quickly treat patients with severe hyperkalemia.
Hey everybody,
Today has one more big announcement for the EM Basic podcast. Today is the launch of the EM Basic App for Apple and Android phones. This app will allow you to stream all episodes of EM Basic and has the added benefit of having the show notes or the articles for the Essential Evidence episodes all in one place.
The cost? Only 4.99 for a great resource to have handy on shifts. Don’t worry- the podcast will still be available for free on iTunes and on this website but hopefully you will find this app useful to your everyday practice. If anything, just know that it will help support the podcast as we start bringing you weekly content. As always, email me at steve@embasic.org with any comments or suggestions about the app.
To access the PDFs for each episode, click the letter “e” in the bottom right hand corner of the episode page.
If you want to listen to a podcast on all of the details about accessing the app here it is:
EM Basic Apple and Adroid App Announcement Podcast
For Apple users:
Warning– there is no “EM Basic” app in the Apple App store- follow these directions to find the app.
1. Go to the app store and search for “podcast box.” This is a free app that you download onto your device.
2. Once you have installed podcast box, open it up and either search for “EM Basic” on the front page or go to the “categories” button on the bottom, go to Science and Medicine, and click on EM Basic.
3. The app will ask you to confirm the purchase and you will be asked for your Apple ID password. You will be charged as an “in App purchase” and you will get immediate access to everything in the app.
Here is the iTunes link for podcast box:
For Android users:
Warning– I have not yet seen the app function on an actual Android phone. If there are problems, email me ASAP at steve@embasic.org and I will fix it as soon as I can
Here is a link to the app on Amazon.com:
If you need directions on installing apps from Amazon on your Android- go to this link which has a short video and written directions on how to do it:
