Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) App
I just discovered this app from the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) (Apple App Store | Google Play) that covers all of their guidelines on periprocedural cutoffs and contraindications, such as managing anticoagulation, cutoffs for platelets/INR/etc. Very helpful for referencing if you find yourself frequently consulting IR for things. And free!
A Structured Diagnostic Approach for Patients with ARDS
Thanks to Eddy Joe, MD for this article from the journal Critical Care. ARDS is a common problem encountered in ICUs and it can actually result from a number of causes. This paper (HTML | PDF) from Bos and colleagues simplifies things with a diagnostic algorithm (below). Bos LDJ, de Grooth HJ, Tuinman PR. A…
Interpreting Clinical Trials
Reading and evaluating clinical trials is one of the tougher things to do as a trainee or new provider. Many times, you only get the minimal amount of training in school and often you don’t pay close enough attention anyway. I find that a lot of trainees think, “I’m here to learn clinical medicine, I’m…
Why does myocardial infarction cause ST elevation?
We all know that the ST segment on the ECG elevates when there is myocardial infarction and depresses in the face of myocardial ischemia. But why? I’m a big physiology nerd so it surprised me that I not only didn’t know the answer, but hadn’t even asked the question. I like to understand the why…
ECG Interpretation
One of the most common things I’m asked about from new providers is for a good resource to learn 12-lead ECG interpretation. 32bravo711 has a couple of really nice series on YouTube that cover rhythm strip analysis and 12-lead ECG interpretation. It starts with the basics and explains things pretty simply without sacrificing quality.
Brain MRI
This is a subject that I get asked about a lot by students. MRIs are tougher that CTs to read and yet can offer a lot of diagnostic assistance. I’ll be honest, 99% of the time, I rely on the neurologists or neuroradiologists to read these studies. That works for me because, honestly, we never…
Coronary Artery Dominance
Knowing which coronary artery has the blockage can help you understand the effects of an MI on the myocardium. And seeing regional wall motion abnormalities on echo can often tell you which coronary artery has the blockage. Because certain areas of the heart are supplied by certain coronary arteries. But, there is a trick. In…
Viral Serologies
Viral serologies can be really confusing. But, these make really good boards questions for those of us in acute care medicine. In this Twitter post, @POCUSmedicine shares a really nice infographic about Hepatitis B serologies. While the top left corner is specific to HBV, the general pattern of interpreting serology results is true of all…
Airway Notes: The Laryngoscope
In this week’s installment of Airway Notes, we take a look at the laryngoscope used for direct laryngoscopy (DL). DL is becoming a less commonly used skill in favor of video laryngoscopy (VL), but I think it is still an essential skill for airway management. There are 2 main types of blades, the Miller and…
NG Tube Placement
The nasogastric tube, or NG tube, is one of the most commonly used devices in the ICU. It can be used for removing things from the stomach or adding them (in the form of medication and tube feeding). Although the small bore feeding tube (AKA Dobhoff tube) is becoming the go-to for feeding and oral…
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critical care notes 