SteriPEN, convenient or worthless?
Clean water is of utmost importance, whether you’re backcountry hiking, camping, or travelling abroad. Does a handheld UV light work well enough to be safe?
Secret Diary of an Emergency Registrar
Age: Start or end of shift? Status: Caffeinated. Likes: Chest tubes; Wearing runners to work. Dislikes: Describing CT brains to neurosurgical registrars over the phone. An evening shift at St Anywheres…
Ultrasound Case 017
A 23 year old woman presents with right sided pelvic pain and vaginal spotting. Her last period was 6 or 7 weeks ago and her urinary BHCG is positive. You perform a transvaginal ultrasound.
Ultrasound Case 049
A 44 year old woman presents with right upper quadrant (RUQ) pain radiating through to her back. She has a fever and is tender on abdominal palpation. She has had several episodes of postprandial RUQ discomfort previously. You wonder if she has gallstones.
Dislocated? Put your shoulder into it!
Shoulder dislocations. Few procedures are more fulfilling in the emergency department. A little intra-articular lidocaine, some ketamine (always the answer), some propofol, and you’ve nearly instantaneously fixed a painful condition. Thankfully we’ve moved on from the barbaric techniques pictured below.…
Komodo dragons: Myth vs reality
The Komodo dragon is a creature that inspires fear and mysticism in many. It’s got all the characteristics of a good monster movie: only found on rare tropical islands, large, and possessing magical saliva that can kill. First identified by…
Ultrasound Case 048
A 69 year old man presents with altered bowel habit and some mild left loin pain. He has been feeling weak and tired recently. He has a microcytic anaemia.
Don’t use compression only CPR for drowning victims
In drowning victims, it’s primarily respiratory in nature, and they absolutely need ventilations. But how many of the ads for CCPR are that nuanced?
Ultrasound Case 047
An 83 year old diet controlled diabetic if brought in by his family with fevers and confusion. He had complained of some mild abdominal discomfort 48 hours before.
Ultrasound Case 046
A 22 year old woman presents with very mild pelvic discomfort and vomiting in early pregnancy. She has had a previous ectopic pregnancy and is worried this may be an ectopic pregnancy.
Is there anything a SAM splint can’t do?
Deciding what to carry in your medical kit on an expedition is hard. You don’t want to leave anything out, but you can’t carry an entire hospital on your back. I mean, the wheels on the slit lamp really suck…
Ultrasound Case 045
A 55 year old woman with hepatitis C and known cirrhosis presents with right upper quadrant pain. You ultrasound her gallbladder.