Emergency Medical Minute

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: What is orbital compartment syndrome, and how is it assessed in the emergency room? Orbital compartment syndrome (OCS) is an emergent ophthalmic condition in which...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: How do amiodarone and lidocaine work on the heart? Amiodarone Blocks potassium channels (Class III effect). Also blocks sodium and calcium channels. Additional...

Contributor: Megan Hurley, MD Educational Pearls: Assess first: confirm the hook isn't near vital structures. Automatic subspecialty consult for eye involvement or proximity to carotid artery, radial artery, peritoneum...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen MD Educational Pearls: Recent prospective randomized clinical trial assessed optimal head-of-bed positioning in patients with LVO 0º vs. 30º elevation Objective was to determine superiority of...

Contributor: Meghan Hurley, MD Educational Pearls: 1. Initial Assessment Start with a physical examination: Determine if the bleed is anterior or posterior. Perform a primary survey: assess airway, breathing, and...

Contributor: Travis Barlock, MD Educational Pearls: Quick Statistics on Electrical Burns: Electrical burns compose roughly 2 to 9% of all burns that come into emergency departments. The majority of patients who receive...

Contributors: Preeya Prakash MD, Adam Greenhaw PharmD, Travis Barlock MD, and Jeffrey Olson MS4 In this episode, cardiologist Preeya Prakash and medical student Jeffrey Olson listen in as two cases are presented from...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Traumatic Brain Injuries are a frequent complaint in the Emergency Department and have increased in recent years. The American Association for Surgery of Trauma (AAST)...

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: A recent study published in a pediatric journal in April 2025 compared temporal and oral thermometers Paired temperature measurements (temporal and oral temperature...

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: Delusional parasitosis is a subtype of the psychiatric condition delusional disorder Defined as a fixed, false belief of infestation by parasites or other organisms A...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: The cause of Alzheimer's disease is multifactorial, but the most widely suspected mechanism is the amyloid cascade hypothesis: Beta-amyloid proteins accumulate in the...

Contributor: Alec Coston, MD Case Report Summary: A 17-year-old female involved in a motor vehicle collision presented to a rural emergency facility via personally operated vehicle. During workup and initial CT scan...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: What is a Nursemaid's Elbow? A condition in which an elbow gets partially pulled out of place (a radial head subluxation) Usually happens in kids under 5 because the...

Contributor: Ricky Dhaliwal, MD Educational Pearls: Angioedema in anaphylaxis Histamine and mast cell-mediated pathway Treatment: First line: epinephrine for vasoconstriction and bronchodilation Second line: H1 and H2...

Contributors: Travis Barlock MD, Jeffrey Olson MS4 Feel free to use the cases below for your own practice. All of the scenarios are completely made up and designed to hit several teaching points. Case 1 25 M, presents...

Contributor: Travis Barlock MD Educational Pearls: Meningitis retention syndrome is a relatively novel and rare clinical condition Aseptic meningitis + acute urinary retention One study reports an incidence of about 8%...

Contributor: Alec Coston, MD Educational Pearls: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is defined as a disruption in brain function that results from impaired liver function or portosystemic shunting. Manifests as various...

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: What is atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response (AFib with RVR) and how does it differ from atrial fibrillation (AFib)? AFib is an abnormal heart rhythm in...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Recorded March 2025 What is the best treatment for a fever? Tylenol? Ibuprofen? Combined? Alternating the two? The journal Pediatrics aimed to answer this question with...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: There are many techniques for reducing a shoulder dislocation A recent study discussed a new variation of closed reduction technique: wrist-clamping shoulder-lifting The...

Contributor: Megan Hurley MD Educational Pearls: Acute toxicity of heavy metals: Gastrointestinal upset is the most common presentation Chronic toxicity of heavy metals: Symptoms depend on the metal ingested Increased...

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: Dilutional Hyponatremia: Occurs when there is an excess of free water relative to sodium in the body. Causes a falsely low sodium concentration without a true change in...

Contributors: Col. (Dr.) Stacy Shackelford Dr. Sean Keenan Paramedic Alan Moreland Dr. Chris Tems Kara Napolitano From military-inspired trauma protocols to behavioral health alternatives and cardiac resuscitation, EMS...

Contributor: Jorge Chalit-Hernandez, OMS4 Educational Pearls: What is the toxic dose of acetaminophen? 7.5 grams, in an adult. The safe daily limit is 4 grams in an adult with a normally functioning liver. This is...

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Many trauma patients are placed on oxygen via non-rebreather A large, multicenter, controlled trial evaluated the outcomes of oxygen administration in trauma patients...