pediatrics

What do you do with the pediatric patient with fever of unknown origin? Is it infection, immunologic, drug fever, a malignancy? Dr. Sean Fox gives you what you need to know on pediatric fever of unknown origin.

Every so often you encounter a patient that has a finding that catches you by surprise. Like having air in places that should not have air in them. We have discussed spontaneous pneumothorax and traumatic pneumothorax in children as well as how to detect pneumothorax in neonates and how to treat a pneumothorax, but what about pneumomediastinum? As you try to resist the urge to say “D’Oh!” let us consider Pneumomediastinum!

“She won’t walk“, or “He just looks like he’s limping“.
So many things can be going on — how do we tackle this chief complaint?
You’re dreading a big work-up. You almost want to tell the kid: please, STOP LIMPING…

IV fluids are classically associated with increased risk of cerebral edema in pediatric DKA. What is the literature behind this association? What mechanisms account for cerebral edema, and what should the emergency physician do?

Pediatric emergency medicine can differ from adult EM in several ways. Dr. James O’Neill brings you his thoughts on pediatric EM in this EM Mindset.

Do we recognize shock early enough?
How do we prioritize our interventions?
Are we making our patient better or worse?

The pediatric patient with that classic barking cough. Is it croup? How do we evaluate and treat these patients? This post evaluates these questions and more.

When an emergency physician is faced with a scenario in which he or she does not believe a legal guardian is acting in a child’s best interests, further investigation and possibly action is required. In cases where the child’s health or safety are in question, temporary protective custody of a minor may be needed. This post evaluates several cases concerning this topic.

“Can’t Intubate Can’t Ventilate” is one of the frightening statements that causes massive surges of adrenaline in everyone. Unfortunately, most neural synapses don’t function well with that large surge of adrenaline, and it is, therefore, imperative to contemplate how to manage this scenario before it arises.

Altered mental status in children can be subtle. Look for age-specific behaviors that range from irritability to anger to sleepiness to decreased interaction.
In the altered child, anchoring bias is your biggest enemy. Keep your mind open to the possibilities, and be ready to change it, when new information becomes available.
For altered adults, use AEIOU TIPS (Alcohol-Epilepsy-Insulin-Overdose-Uremia-Trauma-Infection-Psychosis-Stroke).