Management of acute behavioral disturbance in the Emergency Department: An Italian position paper from AcEMC, CNI-SPDC, SIP-Lo, SITOX

The phenomenon of acute behavioral disturbance is an underrecognized and potentially life-threatening syndrome, and sometimes an emergency in psychiatric settings. Patients presenting to the Italian emergency department (ED) with acute behavioral disturbances account for approximately 3.2% of all ED visits. The spectrum of behaviors and signs overlap with many clinical disease processes. In addition to patients with behavioral problems related to mental disorders or substance abuse, there is also a large group whose behavioral emergencies directly result from medical illness. The complexity of these patients, as well as the interdisciplinary nature of their care, requires a clear and consensual framework for care. A network of Italian scientific societies developed ten reccomendations for good clinical practice. The main purpose is to draw up a document that presents a standardized method for the organization of the care of patients with acute behavioral disorders in E

Customer satisfaction in the observation unit of the Emergency Room

An investigation on the customer satisfaction is not of easy application in an emergency department. The application of an appropriate procedure implies several problems, which are mainly related to the short time hospitalization of some patients, the severity of some clinical conditions and the differences in the knowledge of heath problems between patients. The Authors report the results of a simple questionnaire that was submitted for a three-months period to patients admitted to the Observation Unit of the Emergency Room. Patients’s comments are considered and discussed by nurses and physicians which are in charge of the Observation Unit

Onset of angioedema following a viper bite: different options for diagnostic procedure in an emergency department

The unexpected onset of an angioedema in a patient observed in the emergency department after a viper bite, gave the opportunity to consider some different etiopathogenetic hypothesis and to discuss the most correct diagnostic procedure. The patient was a 60-year-old man who was treated with sartans for hypertension and reported a recent diagnosis of monoclonal gammopathy of uncertain significance. Based on the patient history and on the clinical aspects of the angioedema, the authors consider the possibility of an acquired non-allergic angioedema and its probable close relationship with a lymphoproliferative disorder

Traumatic events involving elderly patients treated with anticoagulants for atrial fibrillation: the downside of stroke prevention

A group of oral anticoagulant-treated patients affected by permanent atrial fibrillation was evaluated after their access to the emergency room as a result of a traumatic accident. In these patients, the re-evaluation of their risk of thromboembolism and bleeding was performed together with the evaluation of their risk of falling and institutionalization. Results show that the emergency department identifies a cohort of very elderly frail patients, who should be carefully reconsidered for anticoagulant therapy after a traumatic event

Hypophosphatemia. From retrospective analysis to the analysis of the potential role of phosphatemia in panic disorders

The detection of a low serum phosphate level is not unusual in an Emergency Department, especially in clinical conditions linked to hyperventilation and subsequent respiratory alkalosis, asthma, sepsis, severe pain, anxiety. Symptoms of hypophosphatemia are typically not specific when the imbalance is not particularly severe, but if hyphophosphatemia does not resolve rhabdomyolisis, hemolysis, decreased tissue oxygenation and respiratory failure can be observed. Only recently some authors have pointed out that the level of serum phosphate in patient with anxiety and panic disorders can give information on the severity of the attacks as well on the clinical course of the disease. In a retrospective analysis on 599 case of hypophosphatemia observed in our ED, the percentage of case of panic disorders was particularly high among patients with lower phosphatemia. Therefore, we decided to examine this aspect closely, assessing if the determination of serum phosphate could be useful in the management of panic attacks at first approach in emergency room. Our observation are consistent with the statement that hypophosphatemia is one of the main clinical aspect of panic attack, and strongly support the hypothesis that hypophosphatemia correlates with the most severe symptoms of panic attack and should be itself considered as one of the most important aspect of this syndrome. Serum phosphate levels appear to mirror its clinical course, and can be used in the clinical setting of an Emergency Department, for the confirmation of a diagnosis of anxiety-panic disorder and as marker of the response to therap

Medicina di laboratorio e Medicina d’urgenza: un connubio indissolubile

Laboratory Medicine and Emergency Medicine: an essential partnership. A better understanding of the pathophysiological bases of many pathologies, along with the considerable technological advances occurred over last few years, have allowed to broaden number and complexity of in vitro diagnostic tests. The emergency department is the clinical setting with the highest risk of forensic disputes, and this explains the inclination that many emergency physicians have towards defensive medicine. Disproportionate request of laboratory tests, with poor awareness on the impact of inappropriateness, is one of the leading negative aftermath of this attitude. The predictable consequences are economic, but also encompass the risk of generating direct damage to the patients, especially in the presence of false positive test results. Since diagnostic appropriateness represents an essential element for patient safety and for sustainability of the National Healthcare System, the Italian Society of Clinical Biochemistry and Clinical Molecular Biology (SIBioC) and the Academy of Emergency Medicine and Care (AcEMC) have organized a joint meeting entitled "Laboratory Medicine and Emergency Medicine: an essential partnership", of which this document is a summary. The issues that have been discussed represent major diagnostic dilemmas faced by emergency physicians, and for which the contribution of laboratory medicine may be decisive. These include acute systemic infections, acute abdominal pain, acute chest pain, head injury and acute bleeding. Since timely transmission of test results is an additional critical element for the clinical decision making in emergency settings, the document will also include considerations on sample transportation from the emergency room to the laboratory

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown on emergency room access in Northern and Central Italy

In Northern Italy the coronavirus infection has spread since February 2020: the increase in admissions of COVID-19 patients corresponded to a drastic decrease in admissions of regular patients to the Emergency Room (ER). This retrospective study was conducted by Academy of Emergency Medicine and Care (AcEMC). During the lockdown period the accesses were reduced by more than 50%, and in the following months of May and June 2020, there was a recovery clearly below (70%) previous year's numbers. We have observed a drastic reduction in white and green codes, a fair reduction in yellow codes, while red codes remained stable. The decrease in access to the ER mainly concerned patients with low priority color codes, but also the reduction in the number of accesses of yellow and red codes, insignificant at a superficial glance, is notable. If we consider that yellow and red codes during the months of the lockdown included many patients with COVID-related respiratory insufficiency, it is evident that there was a clear reduction in the number of serious illnesses not COVID-related. This is certainly another serious consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic