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Daniel Danzl

Publications and source records attributed to Daniel Danzl.

2 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

The status of bedside ultrasonography training in emergency medicine residency programs.

UNLABELLED: Bedside ultrasonography (BU) is rapidly being incorporated into emergency medicine (EM) training programs and clinical practice. In the past decade, several organizations in EM have issued position statements on the use of this technology. Program training content is currently driven by the recently published "Model of the Clinical Practice of Emergency Medicine," which includes BU as a necessary skill. OBJECTIVE: The authors sought to determine the current status of BU training in EM residency programs. METHODS: A survey was mailed in early 2001 to all 122 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited EM residency programs. The survey instrument asked whether BU was currently being taught, how much didactic and hands-on training time was incorporated into the curriculum, and what specialty representation was present in the faculty instructors. In addition, questions concerning the type of tests performed, the number considered necessary for competency, the role of BU in clinical decision making, and the type of quality assurance program were included in the survey. RESULTS: A total of 96 out of 122 surveys were completed (response rate of 79%). Ninety-one EM programs (95% of respondents) reported they teach BU, either clinically and/or didactically, as part of their formal residency curriculum. Eighty-one (89%) respondents reported their residency program or primary hospital emergency department (ED) had a dedicated ultrasound machine. BU was performed most commonly for the following: the FAST scan (focused abdominal sonography for trauma, 79/87%); cardiac examination (for tamponade, pulseless electrical activity, etc., 65/71%); transabdominal (for intrauterine pregnancy, ectopic pregnancy, etc., 58/64%); and transvaginal (for intrauterine pregnancy, ectopic pregnancy, etc., 45/49%). One to ten hours of lecture on BU was provided in 43%, and one to ten hours of hands-on clinical instruction was provided in 48% of the EM programs. Emergency physicians were identified as the faculty most commonly involved in teaching BU to EM residents (86/95%). Sixty-one (69%) programs reported that EM faculty and/or residents made clinical decisions and patient dispositions based on the ED BU interpretation alone. Fourteen (19%) programs reported that no formal quality assurance program was in place. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of ACGME-accredited EM residency programs currently incorporate BU training as part of their curriculum. The majority of BU instruction is done by EM faculty. The most commonly performed BU study is the FAST scan. The didactic component and clinical time devoted to BU instruction are variable between programs. Further standardization of training requirements between programs may promote increasing standardization of BU in future EM practice.

Curriculum↗
PubMed2002

Hypothermia.

Accidental hypothermia is defined as an unintentional decline in the core temperature below 35 degrees C. The population of patients at risk is very heterogeneous. Common thermal stressors include both primary exposures and secondary contributory diseases or injuries. As the core temperature progressively declines, the compensatory metabolic, adrenergic, and cardiovascular responses that attempt to maintain thermal homeostasis fail. At this juncture, therapeutic intervention must occur. An understanding of the pathophysiological variables impacting rewarming is critical. For example, the effects of cold on the coagulation system impact both the approach to cardiovascular resuscitation and the choice of rewarming technique. There are no randomized controlled trials that definitively establish the ideal rewarming strategy for each unique presentation. The resuscitative goal is to match the clinical presentation with the threshold temperatures at which various rewarming modalities and pharmacological interventions should occur. Identification of the indications for both noninvasive and invasive active rewarming techniques in patients requiring critical care is key. Poikilothermia, failure to rewarm, endocrinologic insufficiency, cardiovascular instability, traumatic or toxicological induced peripheral vasodilation, or the presence of major predisposing factors mandates active rewarming. The simultaneous or sequential use of the various rewarming techniques permits a versatile approach to therapy. Outcome remains problematic to predict because there may never be a validated prognostic neurological scale. The history, physical examination, and, ironically, the vital signs are routinely misleading. A tachycardia that is not proportionate to the degree of hypothermia suggests hypovolemia, hypoglycemia, or the presence of toxins. Given the decreased carbon dioxide production, persistent hyperventilation implies an underlying organic acidosis or central nervous system abnormality. Finally, toxic or traumatic or infectious impairment of the central nervous system may be obscured by hypothermia.

Journal Article↗