Preamble: Movember 0 Movember is an annual event involving growing a mustache during November to raise awareness and funds to support men’s health issues including prostate cancer. To support Movember, this post is about mustaches… and critical care, of course. 0 Introduction with a Case 0 Once upon a time at Genius General Hospital, there was […]
Hydro-Point: Ultrasound sign of air-fluid level in the pleura
Introduction with a case 0 Hydro-point on thoracic ultrasound is diagnostic of an intrapleural air-fluid level, which may be caused by hydropneumothorax, hemopneumothorax, or pyopneumothorax. This has been described in the literature but is not widely appreciated (Volpicelli 2013). For example, a prominent ultrasound website may have misdiagnosed this. Before going further, watch the video […]
Mythbusting: Correcting the anion gap for albumin is not helpful
0 Introduction 0 In 1998 Figge reported a strong linear relationship between anion gap and albumin concentration, which has led to the widespread recommendation to correct anion gap for albumin. It was proposed that since albumin is an anion, failing to correct for a low albumin level could allow an anion-gap acidosis to go undetected. […]
Mythbusting: Heparin isn’t beneficial for noninvasive management of NSTEMI
Introduction 0 The use of heparin for noninvasive management of non-ST elevation MI (NSTEMI) is one of the most deeply entrenched myths of modern medicine. Although heparin reduces reinfarction, when it is discontinued there is a rebound in infarction rates. Ultimately, short-term treatment with heparin delays reinfarction without having any sustained benefit. Clinical trials which fail […]
10 Pearls from the Levitan Airway Course
0 Introduction 0 Last week I attended Dr. Levitan’s airway course in Baltimore. It was a teriffic course, which I would recommend to anyone looking to improve their airway management skills. For those of you unable to attend the course, here are some points which were particularly interesting to me. 0 Pearl #10. Respect the […]