If you're like us, chances are that you've encountered the difficulty in evaluating a patient in the emergency department after seizure-like activity. Read on, contained within we offer a number of pearls for assessing this unique patient population.
A thunderclap headache is defined by sudden, severe pain. The classic teaching in medical school is that a “thunderclap” headache is pathognomonic for subarachnoid hemorrhage. However, only 11-25% of TCHs are due to SAH. What else should you consider when a patient presents with a TCH?
Intracranial hemorrhage is the second most common cause of stroke, accounting for 10 to 15% of all acute strokes. These patients can present with many different symptoms and can be life-threatening. This post details pearls and pitfalls in the differential, evaluation, and management of these patients.
TIA is a brief neurologic deficit due to cerebral ischemia, with no permanent infarction. It affects over 200,000 U.S. patients per year and may precede 14% to 23% of strokes. Many have sought risk stratification tools to determine who may be appropriate for discharge with follow-up. This post evaluates the new ACEP guidelines for TIA and the controversies in the ED evaluation of TIA.
Diagnosing seizures in young children can be difficult and even more so in those under the age of one year. This is a brief review of the evaluation and treatment of both febrile and afebrile seizures in those under the age of one year in the emergency department.
Dementia versus delirium is an age old question in emergency medicine. Many studies have been conducted seeking a means of differentiation. First, is there a way to differentiate, and second, is dementia always irreversible? Dementia is often thought to be due to a chronic disease, but studies suggest 20-30% of dementia cases are due to a reversible cause. This post looks at these questions and more.
Cerebral Venous Thrombosis (CVT) is a rare but emergent cause of headache. It is a difficult diagnosis to make due to a wide variety of symptoms. This article reviews the etiology, risk factors and symptoms of CVT. Imaging and treatment regimens are also discussed.
What do you think of with the patient presenting with fever, headache, and focal neurologic signs? Meningitis? Encephalitis? What about brain abscess? This post is filled with pearls and pitfalls on the pathogenesis, presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of brain abscess.
