Episode 984: Fish Hooks
Emergency Medical Minute
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, testicle, or urethra Barbed hook: cannot be pulled back through the entry without disengaging the barb Removal Techniques String-Pull: best for superficial, single-barbed hooks Depress shank and eye of hook to disengage barb and then pull string taut and jerk suddenly along the long axis Can only be used when the hook is in a body part that can be firmly secured so it...
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Episode 983: Head-of-Bed Position in Large Vessel Occlusion Strokes
Emergency Medical Minute
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 the two angles in stability prior to thrombectomy for LVO patients 45 patients randomized to the group with 0° head positioning and 47 patients randomized to the group with 30° head positioning Patients in the 30º group experienced worsening of NIHSS by 2 points or more Patients with head position at 0° showed score stability Hazard ratio 34.40; 95% CI,...
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Episode 982: Epistaxis Management
Emergency Medical Minute
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 circulation (ABCs). Airway compromise = intubation immediately. If the patient is stable, have them blow out any clots, then re-examine the nares. 2. Topical Medications Anesthetics: provide local anesthesia and pain relief. Lidocaine Tetracaine Vasoconstrictors: reduce bleeding. LET (Lidocaine, Epinephrine, Tetracaine) is ideal because it provides...
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Episode 981: Electrical Burns
Emergency Medical Minute
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 electrical burns are male, typically aged 20’s to 30’s, accounting for 80 to 90% of all electrical burn victims. The majority of burns are linked to occupational exposure. The upper extremities are more commonly impacted by electrical burns, accounting for 70 to 90% of entry points into the body during an exposure. What are some of the key considerations in electrical...
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Tox Talks 2025 Recap 1, Digoxin and Beta Blockers
Emergency Medical Minute
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 EMM’s recent event, Tox Talk 2025. Talk 1- Digoxin Overdose Dr. Adam Greenhaw presents a case of a Digoxin overdose along with many pearls. During the studio listen in, Dr. Prakash helps to answer the questions of: How does digoxin work? Why might a patient still be on digoxin in 2025? What are the EKG findings of digoxin toxicity? Is there any utility in atropine...
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Episode 980: Brain Injury Guidelines (BIG)
Emergency Medical Minute
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) has created Brain Injury Guidelines (BIG), in an attempt to categorize brain injuries and the level of treatment they require. They are… BIG 1 Normal neuro exam Not intoxicated Not on anticoagulation or antiplatelet medications Minimal findings on head CT No fracture <4 mm bleed (subdural, epidural, intraparenchymal (max one location)) Maximum of “trace” subarachnoid...
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Episode 979: Oral vs Temporal Thermometers
Emergency Medical Minute
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 within 30 minutes) were obtained from 1,412 pediatric patients 26% of patients had statistically different temporal and oral temperatures The temporal reading was always lower than the oral reading Children less than 12 years old were 2-3x more likely to actually have that statistical difference in temperatures The study also evaluated 1,000 adult patients 36% had a temporal...
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Episode 978: Delusional Parasitosis
Emergency Medical Minute
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 somatic type of delusional disorder Primary delusional parasitosis Occurs in the absence of other psychiatric or medical conditions Secondary delusional parasitosis Causes include methamphetamine use disorder, schizophrenia, neurologic diseases, or medical conditions such as thyroid disease Pathophysiology Poorly understood Upregulation of striatal dopamine system is...
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Episode 977: Amyloid Therapy and Stroke-like Events
Emergency Medical Minute
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 central nervous system, forming plaques that impair neuronal function. In recent years, advances have led to the development of targeted therapies with monoclonal antibodies. These drugs: Work by degrading amyloid plaques Slow the rate of cognitive decline and disease progression Have major side effects, most notably the development of amyloid-related imaging abnormalities...
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Episode 976: Improvised Burr Hole in an Epidural Hematoma
Emergency Medical Minute
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, the patient began rapidly decompensating with CT revealing a 1.5cm epidural hematoma with 7mm of midline shift. The patient went from being able to walk and talk to being obtunded with a blown left pupil and unresponsive. Following intubation, the patient was being prepared for transport but potential delays required immediate emergency evacuation of the hematoma via a Burr Hole....
info_outlineContributor: Megan Hurley MD
Educational Pearls:
What is the mediastinum?
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The thoracic cavity is separated into different compartments by membranes
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The lungs exist in their own pleural cavities, and the mediastinum is everything in between
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The mediastinum extends from the sternum to the thoracic vertebrae and includes the heart, the aorta, the trachea, the esophagus, the thymus, as well as many lymph nodes and nerves.
What is a pneumomediastinum?
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Air in the mediastinum
How can pneumomediastinum be categorized?
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Traumatic
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Ex. Stab wound to the trachea
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Ex. Boerhaave’s Syndrome of the esophagus, possibly from an endoscopic procedure. This mechanism in particular is a higher risk of infection because not only air but food can accumulate in the mediastinum
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Ex. Intubation with a bougie
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These will likely need surgical repair
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Nontraumatic
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Ex. Forceful inhalation causing microperforations in the trachea. Possibly while inhaling something like drugs
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Ex. Bad asthma for similar reasons
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Ex. Gas forming bacteria
What happens if you use positive pressure ventilation on a patient with a hole in their trachea?
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The positive pressure will force extra air into the mediastinum
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The air will move between the layers of subcutaneous tissue and can track up into the neck and face regions recognized as crepitus on exam
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This can also cause a tension pneumomediastinum in which the air pressure in the compartment constricts the heart, impeding its ability to fill during diastole
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These patients can undergo bronchoscopy because that procedure does not require positive pressure and will not worsen the condition. Endoscopies do require positive pressure so endoscopies are not an option
How is a tension pneumomediastinum treated?
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By inserting a needle into the space from below the xiphoid process to allow the air to escape, similar to a pericardiocentesis
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As a temporizing measure, if the hole is high enough in the trachea, the intubation can be continued by deliberately pushing the endotracheal tube into the right main bronchus, creating a seal, and only ventilating the right lung while the patient heads to surgery. This is called right-mainstemming.
References
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Clancy DJ, Lane AS, Flynn PW, Seppelt IM. Tension pneumomediastinum: A literal form of chest tightness. J Intensive Care Soc. 2017 Feb;18(1):52-56. doi: 10.1177/1751143716662665. Epub 2016 Aug 3. PMID: 28979537; PMCID: PMC5606356.
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Grewal, J., & Gillaspie, E. A. (2024). Pneumomediastinum. Thoracic surgery clinics, 34(4), 309–319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.thorsurg.2024.06.001
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Underner, M., Perriot, J., & Peiffer, G. (2017). Pneumomédiastin et consommation de cocaïne [Pneumomediastinum and cocaine use]. Presse medicale (Paris, France : 1983), 46(3), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lpm.2017.01.002
Summarized by Jeffrey Olson, MS3 | Edited by Meg Joyce & Jorge Chalit, OMS3
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