Ambient air pollution and emergency department visits among children and adults in Casablanca,Morocco

This study presents the relationships between ambient air pollutants and morbidity and emergency department visits among children and adults performed in Great Casablanca, the most populated and economic region in Morocco. This research was analyzed using conditional Poisson model for the period 2011–2013. In the period of study, the daily average concentrations of SO₂, NO₂, O₃ and PM₁₀ in Casablanca were 209.4 µg/m³, 61 µg/m³, 113.2 µg/m³ and 75.1 µg/m³, respectively. In children less than 5 years old, risk of asthma could be increased until 12% per 10 µg/m³ increase in NO₂, PM10, SO₂ and O₃. In children over 5 years and adults, an increase of 10 µg/m³ air pollutant can cause an increase until 3% and 4% in respiratory consultations and acute respiratory infection, respectively. Similarly, impact on emergency department visits due to respiratory and cardiac illness was established. Our results suggest a not negligible impact on morbidity of outdoor air pollution by NO₂, SO₂, O₃, and PM₁₀.     

Nursing Home Residents’ Functional Trajectories and Mortality After a Transfer to the Emergency Department

ObjectiveTo describe nursing home residents’ (NHRs) functional trajectories and mortality after a transfer to the emergency department (ED).DesignCase-control observational multicenter study.Setting and ParticipantsIn total, 1037 NHRs presenting to 17 EDs in France over 4 nonconsecutive weeks in 2016.MethodsFinite mixture models were fitted to longitudinal data on activities of daily living (ADL) scores before transfer (time 1), during hospitalization (time 2), and within 1 week after discharge (time 3) to identify groups of NHRs following similar functional evolution. Factors associated with mortality were investigated by Cox regressions.ResultsTrajectory modeling identified 4 distinct trajectories of ADL. The first showed a high and stable (across time 1, time 2, and time 3) functional capacity around 5.2/6 ADL points, with breathlessness as the main condition leading to transfer. The second displayed an initial 37.8% decrease in baseline ADL performance (between time 1 and time 2), followed by a 12.5% recovery of baseline ADL performance (time 2?time 3), with fractures as the main condition. The third displayed a similar initial decrease, followed by a 6.7% recovery. The fourth displayed an initial 70.1% decrease, followed by an 8.5% recover, with more complex geriatric polypathology situations. Functional decline was more likely after being transferred for a cerebrovascular condition or for a fracture, after being discharged from ED to a surgery department, and with a heavier burden of distressing symptoms during transfer. Mortality after ED transfer was more likely in older NHRs, those in a more severe condition, those who were hospitalized more frequently in the past month, and those transferred for cerebrovascular conditions or breathlessness.Conclusions and ImplicationsIdentified trajectories and factors associated with functional decline and mortality should help clinicians decide whether to transfer NHRs to ED. NHRs with high functional ability seem to benefit from ED transfers whereas on-site alternatives should be sought for those with poor functional ability.     

Diagnostic Testing in Long-Term Care and Resident Emergency Department Visits: A Retrospective Cohort Study

ObjectivesTo investigate the association between rapid access to radiographs, blood tests, urine cultures, and intravenous (IV) therapy in a long-term care (LTC) home with resident transfers to the emergency department (ED).DesignRetrospective cohort study.Setting and Participants21,811 residents living in 162 LTC homes in Ontario, Canada.MethodsWe administered a survey to LTC homes to collect wait times for radiographs, basic blood tests, urine culture, and IV therapy. Rapid availability was defined as typically receiving test results within 1 or 2 days, or same-day IV therapy. We linked the survey results to administrative data and defined a cohort of residents living in survey-respondent homes between January and May 2017. We followed residents in the linked administrative databases for 6 months, until discharge, or death. Two physicians identified diagnostic codes for ED visits that were potentially preventable with rapid availability of each of the 4 resources. Multilevel logistic regression models estimated associations between potentially preventable ED visits and rapid diagnostic tests and intravenous access while controlling for demographic characteristics, illness severity, LTC home size, chain status, and physician availability.ResultsRapid blood tests, radiographs, urine culture, and IV therapy were available in 55%, 47%, 34%, and 45% of LTC homes, respectively. LTC homes that were part of multihome chains were less likely to have rapid access to the 4 resources. Of the 4736 residents (27%) who visited an ED during follow-up, individuals from homes with rapid access to radiographs (odds ratio 0.79, 95% confidence interval 0.66-0.97), urine culture (0.88, 0.72-1.08), blood tests (0.83, 0.69-1.00), and IV therapy (0.93, 0.70-1.23) tended to have fewer potentially preventable ED visits.Conclusions and ImplicationsRapid access to diagnostic testing and IV therapy in LTC reduced ED visits. Improving access to these resources may prevent ED visits and allow residents to stay home.     

Comparing Post-Acute Populations and Care in Veterans Affairs and Community Nursing Homes

ObjectiveThe quality of care provided by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is increasingly being compared to community providers. The objective of this study was to compare the VA Community Living Centers (CLCs) to nursing homes in the community (NHs) in terms of characteristics of their post-acute populations and performance on 3 claims-based (“short-stay”) quality measures.DesignObservational, cross-sectional.Setting and ParticipantsCLC and NH residents admitted from hospitals during July 2015–June 2016.MethodsCLC residents were compared with 3 NH populations: males, Veterans, and all NH residents. CLC and NH performance was compared on risk-adjusted claims-based measures: unplanned rehospitalizations and emergency department visits within 30 days of CLC or NH admission and successful discharge to the community within 100 days of NH admission.ResultsVeterans admitted from hospitals to CLCs (n = 23,839 Veterans/135 CLCs) were less physically impaired, less likely to have anxiety, congestive heart failure, hypertension, and dementia than Veterans (n = 241,177/14,818 NHs), males (n = 661,872/15,280 NHs), and all residents (n = 1,674,578/15,395 NHs) admitted to NHs from hospitals. Emergency department and successful discharge risk-adjusted rates of CLCs were statistically significantly better than those of NHs [mean (standard deviation): 8.3% (4.6%) and 67.7% (11.5%) in CLCs vs 11.9% (5.3%) and 57.0% (10.5%) in NHs, respectively]. CLCs had slightly worse rehospitalization rates [22.5% (6.2%) in CLCs vs 21.1% (5.9%) in NHs], but lower combined emergency department and rehospitalization rates [30.8% (0.8%) in CLCs vs 33.0% (0.7%) in NHs].Conclusions and ImplicationsCLCs and NHs serve different post-acute care populations. Using the same risk-adjusted NH quality metrics, CLCs provided better post-acute care than community NHs.     

急诊内镜与择期内镜对急性非静脉曲张性上消化道出血的临床价值对比

目的:对比急诊内镜与择期内镜对急性非静脉曲张性上消化道出血(ANVUGIB)的临床价值。方法:选择2018年5月~2019年4月169例ANVUGIB患者,按内镜诊疗时间的不同将其分为两组:急诊内镜组(n=85)与择期内镜组(n=84)。比较急诊内镜与择期内镜对ANVUGIB病因的检出率及治疗效果。结果:急诊内镜明确检出病因81例(95.3%),未能明确病因4例(4.7%),择期内镜明确检出病因73例(86.9%),未能明确病因11例(13.1%),急诊内镜对ANVUGIB病因的检出率明显高于择期内镜(P<0.05)。急诊内镜止血成功82例(96.5%),再次出血4例(4.7%),转手术1例(1.2%);择期内镜止血成功75例(89.3%),再次出血9例(10.7%),转手术5例(6.0%);急诊内镜止血成功率明显高于择期内镜(P<0.05)。结论:对于ANVUGIB应早期行急诊内镜,不仅能及时明确病因,还能有效提高止血成功率。     

新疆179家医院突发事件医疗应急救援管理体系现状调查

  目的  评价新疆医院突发事件医疗应急救援管理体系建设现状,为提高突发事件医疗应急救援能力提供依据。
  方法  2019年3-5月,采取整群抽样的研究方法,对新疆二级及以上医院的应急管理现状、应急制度、应急预案、应急专家组、应急演练等情况进行调查,并对结果进行汇总分析。
  结果  共有179家医院参与调查并回收有效问卷,占新疆所有二级及以上医院的93.72%。179家医院的应急处置工作制度总制定率为90.41%,应急预案总制定率为66.17%,应急专家组总建立率为57.79%。近3年179家医院的应急演练总开展率为34.84%。应急预案、应急专家组的建立、应急演练的开展均偏重于传染病和自然灾害,重大烧伤、放射性、有毒有害化学性物质泄漏等相关突发事件的应急管理体系建设还需加强。11类应急事件的应急预案制定、应急专家组设置、应急演练开展情况方面,大多呈现三级医院好于二级医院、北疆片区优于南疆的现象,其中,部分制度的差异有统计学意义（P < 0.05）。
  结论  应针对新形势下新疆发生的突发事件的性质,科学、务实地建立新疆各级医院应对突发事件医疗救援应急管理体系。
     

学龄前儿童居家隔离期间睡眠问题及影响因素分析

目的 分析学龄前儿童居家隔离期间的睡眠问题及影响因素,为降低因突发性公共卫生事件而居家隔离和限制活动对儿童健康的影响提供科学依据。方法 2020年3月15-28日对16 094名3~6岁儿童进行在线调查。由家长填写一般资料、标准中文版儿童睡眠习惯问卷(CSHQ)以及长处和困难问卷(SDQ),收集儿童睡眠及情绪/行为相关数据。结果 学龄前儿童睡眠问题的发生率为76.8%(CSHQ总分＞41),与年龄、家长受教育程度及家庭类型等人口社会学因素显著相关(χ²=66.98、36.51、11.01, P＜0.05)。控制人口社会学因素后,情绪/行为问题越严重的儿童,睡眠问题的发生风险越高。结论 疫情期间学龄前儿童睡眠问题普遍存在,与儿童情绪/行为问题相关,应当进行综合干预,从而将因疫情而居家隔离和限制活动对儿童健康的影响降至最低。     

少数民族地区青少年对新冠疫情的认知调查

目的调查少数民族地区青少年对新冠疫情的认知及应对情况。方法采用分层抽样的方法,通过“问卷星”在线平台对香格里拉市1949名在校学生进行调查。结果结果显示,81.94%的学生在2020年1月初之前已知晓疫情;83.12%的学生通过电视和微信知晓疫情;9333%的学生认为病毒通过飞沫传播;94.80%的学生会通过戴口罩、不聚餐等方式进行防护;疫情相关知识的正确率为71.44%。不同年龄、性别、民族、专业、生源地、家庭年收入的学生对部分调查问题的差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论学生对疫情认知整体情况较好,部分问题仍有较大提升空间。学校应做好疫情常态化防控,完善心理疏导体系,多措并举,引导学生做好自我防护。     

1932例拔牙后出血临床分析

目的 探讨拔牙后出血的原因及急诊处理的方法。方法 回顾性分析1932例拔牙后出血急诊患者的出血原因及处理方法。结果 本组病例病因主要有软组织撕裂350例（18．1％）,高血压340例（17．6％）,牙槽窝内残留性肉芽组织及残留牙根270例（14％）,其它972例。经口腔科急诊处理治愈1810例（93．7％）,122例转入内科及血液科,其中120例痊愈,2例死亡。结论 拔牙后出血为口腔科常见的并发症,对其应以预防为主,急诊处理时应兼顾局部与全身,必要时会同内科医生进一步检查,明确病因,进行治疗。