Pertussis, commonly known as the "whooping cough," is an infection of the upper respiratory tract leading to a protracted cough illness. Emergency physicians should become familiar with the diagnosis and management of this disease, given the potential of pertussis to cause serious morbidity and mortality in young infants and protracted illness in adolescents and adults. Furthermore, diagnosing and treating pertussis in a timely manner has a large public health impact, given its extremely contagious nature.
You are working on a busy summer Friday night when you get a medic call on the radio that you will be receiving three children from the same motor vehicle crash (MVC). There was moderate damage to the vehicle, airbags did deploy, and there were no fatalities at the scene. Five minutes later, you have the following patients, in full spinal precautions, in your ED:
Treating the hypoglycemia and metabolic derangements caused by antidiabetic medications, especially in massive overdose, are dynamic as new agents are introduced.
Pediatric wrist and hand injuries are very common in the emergency department (ED). Early recognition and appropriate management are critical to maximize the chances of an optimal functional outcome. This article reviews five key injuries of the pediatric wrist and hand: scaphoid fracture, proximal thumb metacarpal fractures, skier's thumb/gamekeeper's thumb, phalanx injuries, and boxer's fractures/fight bites.
