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Background Patients who receive care in an emergency department (ED), are usually unattended while waiting in queues. Objectives This study was done to determine, whether the application of queuing theory analysis might shorten the waiting times of patients admitted to emergency wards. Patients and Methods This was an operational study to use queuing theory analysis in the ED. In the first phase, a field study was conducted to delineate the performance of the ED and enter the data obtained into simulator software. In the second phase, "ARENA" software was used for modeling, analysis, creating a simulation and improving the movement of patients in the ED. Validity of the model was confirmed through comparison of the results with the real data using the same instrument. The third phase of the study concerned modeling in order to assess the effect of various operational strategies, on the queue waiting time of patients who were receiving care in the ED. Results In the first phase, it was shown that 47.7% of the 3000 patient records were cases referred for trauma treatment, and the remaining 52.3% were referred for non-trauma services. A total of 56% of the cases were male and 44% female. Maximum input was 4.5 patients per hour and the minimum input was 0.5 per hour. The average length of stay for patients in the trauma section was three hours, while for the non-trauma section it was four hours. In the second phase, modeling was tested with common scenarios. In the third phase, the scenario with the addition of one or more senior emergency resident(s) on each shift resulted in a decreased length of stay from 4 to 3.75 hours. Moreover, the addition of one bed to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and/or Critical Care Unit (CCU) in the study hospital, reduced the occupancy rate of the nursing service from 76% to 67%. By adding another clerk to take electrocardiograms (ECG) in the ED, the average time from a request to performing the procedure is reduced from 26 to 18 minutes. Furthermore, the addition of 50% more staff to the laboratory and specialist consultations led to a 90 minute reduction in the length of stay. It was also shown that earlier consultations had no effect on the length of stay. Conclusions Application of queuing theory analysis can improve movement and reduce the waiting times of patients in bottlenecks within the ED throughput.
Background Tonsillectomy is a common procedure causing considerable postoperative pain. Postoperative pain intensity of 60 - 70 in the scale of visual analog scale (VAS) has been reported up to 3 - 4 days which could continue until 11 days after the surgery. Objectives The current study aimed to compare the analgesic effect of gabapentin and diclofenac on pain after tonsillectomy with the control group. Patients and Methods In this double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 90 patients aged 10-25 years, ASA classes I and II were randomly selected to receive 20 mg/kg oral gabapentin (n = 30), 1.0 mg / kg rectal diclofenac (n = 30) or placebo (n = 30) preoperatively. Pain was evaluated postoperatively on a visual analogue scale at 2, 6, 12 and 24 h. Opioid consumption in the first 24 h after surgery and the side effects were also recorded. Results There was no significant difference in terms of age, sex, and time of surgery in the three groups. Patients in the gabapentin and diclofenac groups had significantly lower pain scores at all-time intervals than those in the placebo group. The total meperidine consumed in the gabapentin (14.16 ± 6.97 P = 0.001) and diclofenac (16.66 ± 8.95, P = 0.004) groups was significantly less than that of the placebo (33.4 ± 13.97) group. The frequency of side effects such as vomiting, dizziness, and headache was not significantly different among the groups. Conclusions It can be concluded that gabapentin and diclofenac reduced postoperative pain and opioid consumption without obvious side effects.
Background Drowning is a serious but neglected health problem in low-and middle-income countries. Objectives To describe the effectiveness of drowning prevention program on the reduction of drowning mortality rates in rural settings at the north of Iran, and guide its replication elsewhere. Patients and Methods This interventional design included pre- and post-intervention observations in the rural area of the Caspian Sea coastline without a comparison community. Cross-sectional data were collected at pre- and post-intervention phases. Outcome evaluation was based on a four-year period (March 2005-March 2009) utilizing drowning registry data for the north of Iran. Results The implementation program increased the rate of membership in an organization responsible for promoting safety in high risk areas near the Caspian Sea. Compared to a WHO standardized population, drowning incidence in rural areas of the study demonstrated a continuous decrease in age-specific drowning rate among the oldest victims with a gradual decline during the implementation. In the study area, the epidemiological aspects of the study population were exposed and contributing factors were highlighted. Conclusions This study showed that the promotion of passive interventions had a greater effect on drowning rate than that of active interventions.
Background Injury is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the world, and the home is one of the most common places for these types of injuries. Objectives This study is designed to investigate the epidemiology of home-related injuries in Kashan, Iran. Patients and Methods This investigation is a retrospective cross-sectional study on existing data from the data bank of the Trauma Research Center at Kashan University of Medical Sciences during a six-year period. Demographic data such as; sex, age, place of residence, educational and occupational status, injury mechanism, injured organs and injury outcomes, were analyzed using a chi-squared test and P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results The number of home injuries was 10146 in total, that included about 25.2% of all injuries in Kashan City. Most of the injured people were men (58.3%), 87.4% lived in the city and 18.6% were aged more than 64 years. The majority (42.7%) had a primary or secondary school education and 27.2% were housewives. Falling from a height was the most common cause of injury (55.3%). Limbs were the most common body region that was injured (73.7%). Young men (under 15 years) and older women (over 65 years) had more injuries, especially from falls. There was a statistically significant difference between the sex and age of the injured people (P < 0.001), sex and injury mechanism (P < 0.001), and also between the injury mechanism and sex in the age groups (P < 0.001). Conclusions The most common injury mechanism in regard to home accidents was falls; therefore fall-related injury prevention programs should be designed to make homes safer and education should focus on changes in lifestyle to reduce fall susceptibility.
A B S T R A C T A 36-year-old male patient with posttraumatic cervical cord damage and resultant quadriparesis, demonstrated hypotension and periods of bradycardia. For most of his two-month stay in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), he was dependent on dopamine support to maintain hemodynamic stability. Keeping in mind evidence from the literature, that electrostimulation of acupoints Neiguan (PC - 6) and Jianshi (PC - 5) has therapeutic efficacy in restoring hypotension, we treated this patient with two six-hour periods of electrostimulation at these acupoints. We noted beneficial hemodynamic effects, with a resultant successful withdrawal of dopamine support lasting for up to 48 hours. This case report demonstrates the therapeutic efficacy of electrostimulation of PC - 5 and PC - 6 acupoints to wean a patient off chronic dopamine support, and this warrants further investigation.
Abstract Posttraumatic intravasation of fat and debris can lead to a cascade of events. Hydroxyethyl starches (HES) markedly suppress neutrophil influx by decreasing pulmonary capillary permeability and facilitating tissue oxygenation by improving microcirculation. It was hypothesized that in hypoxemic femur injury patients undergoing operative stabilization, HES administration will prevent the deterioration of respiratory variables and facilitates recovery. This prospective, double-blind, randomized preliminary study, enrolled twenty posttraumatic hypoxemic patients (room air PaO2 < 70 mmHg, Schonfeld fat embolism index score (SS) > 5) scheduled for femur fracture stabilization under general anesthesia. Patients were allocated to receive either; 6% HES 130/0.42, 15 mL/kg or 0.9% normal saline (NS) to maintain their central venous pressure (CVP) 12 + 2 mm Hg. Blood was transfused according to the maximum allowable blood loss and by serial hematocrit estimations. Perioperative Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), physiological variables, arterial oxygen saturation (SpO2), arterial blood gas (ABG), SS and P/F ratios were recorded until recovery. The partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood / fraction of inspired oxygen ratio (PaO2/FiO2) improved from a preoperative value of 273.33 ± 13.05 to 435.70 in the 6% Hydroxyethyl starch group (HES) and from 275.24 ± 15.34 to 302.25 ± 70.35 in the NS group over a period of six days (P values =0.970, 0.791, 0.345, 0.226, 0.855, 0.083, 0.221). Time taken to achieve a P/F ratio > 300 and for persistent reduction of Murray’s lung injury score (LIS) were comparable (P = 0.755 and 0.348, respectively). The number of ventilator, intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital stay days, did not differ (P value = 0.234, 1.00, 0. 301, respectively). There were no adverse sequelae or mortalities. A trend showing relatively fast improvement in the P/F ratio and an early reduction in LIS values was observed in hypoxemic, femur injury patients receiving intraoperative colloid supplementation.
Background Laceration of the hand extensor tendons is common in the upper extremities, causing soft tissue trauma. These tendons, because of their superficial location and lying adjacent to bones, have a greater tendency to be injured than flexor tendons. Objectives The aim of this study was to determine the results of primary repairs of lacerated extensor tendons of the fingers, with respect to the zone of injury, and also whether the results are different according to the anatomical zone in which they occur. Patients and Methods During a period of two years and four months, 32 patients with open wounds and lacerated extensor tendons of the hand were hospitalized and underwent surgery. Repairs were done by a modified Kessler technique using 0 - 4 nylon suture. After repairing, the wrist was splinted for four weeks. Patients were followed-up for 12 months and the results were evaluated according to the Miller’s scoring system. Results A total of 72 extensor tendons were repaired. The mean age of the patients was 24.6 years. The best results were obtained in zones 3 and 5 (84% and 88% respectively), and the worst results were seen in zones 1, 2 and 4, P = 0.01. Wound infections or re-ruptures were not seen. Conclusions Repair of extensor tendon cuts on the dorsal surface of the hand and forearm were associated with better results in zones 3 and 5 than in zones 1, 2 and 4. Repair by the modified Kessler suture method provides proper stability at the site of the tendon cut.
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Background Diaphragmatic hernia after blunt trauma is an uncommon and often undiagnosed condition. Objectives We aimed to review patients who presented with delayed blunt traumatic hernia of diaphragm. Patients and Methods In this retrospective study, the medical records of six patients treated for blunt diaphragmatic hernias who were admitted to Kashan Shahid Beheshti hospital between June 2007 and June 2011 were analyzed. Results Six patients with mean age of 41 years were included in the study. Male to female ratio was 2:1. Mean duration between trauma and admission to the hospital was 6.5 years (2 – 26 years). Five patients had left-sided diaphragmatic hernia. Chest X-ray was obtained from all patients which was diagnostic in 50 percent of the cases (n = 4). Additional diagnostic imaging with computerized tomography (CT) was used in six patients and upper gastrointestinal (GI) contrast study was performed in one patient. All patients underwent thoracotomy incision. Mesh repair was utilized in one patient. The mean hospitalization time was 14.1 days. There was one postoperative death (16.7%). Conclusions Late presentation of blunt diaphragmatic hernia is an uncommon and challenging situation for the surgeon. Prompt diagnosis and treatment prevent serious morbidity and mortality associated with complications such as gangrene and perforation of herniated organ.