Journal of Acute Disease

190-194

Authors: Sonal Kaushal Ginoya , Samira N. Parikh

Objective: To compare the value of HEART and TIMI scores in predicting major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) of patients with chest pain in the emergency department at a tertiary care hospital in Ahmedabad, a city in western India. Methods: A prospective study was conducted on chest pain patients from January to December 2019. All adult patients with non-traumatic chest pain presenting to the emergency department were included, and their HEART and TIMI scores were evaluated. The patients were followed up within 4 weeks for monitoring any major adverse cardiac events or death. The receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve was used to determine the value of HEART and TIMI scores in predicting MACEs. Besides, the specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of the two scores were assessed and compared. Results: A total of 350 patients were evaluated [mean age (55.03±16.6) years, 56.6% of males]. HEART score had the highest predictive value of MACEs with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.98, followed by the TIMI score with an AUC of 0.92. HEART score had the highest specificity of 98.0% (95% CI: 96.4%-99.6%), the sensitivity of 75.0% (95% CI: 70.7%-79.3%), and PPV of 97.0% (95% CI: 94.1%-99.9%) and NPV of 82.5% (95% CI: 74.6%- 90.4%) for low-risk patients. TIMI score had a specificity of 95.0% (95% CI: 92.4%-97.6%), sensitivity of 75.0% (95% CI: 69.4%- 80.6%), PPV of 92.3% (95% CI: 88.1%-96.5%) and NPV of 82.3% (95% CI: 73.8%-90.8%) for low-risk patients. Conclusions: HEART score is an easier and more practical triage instrument to identify chest pain patients with low-risk for MACEs compared to TIMI score. Patients with high HEART scores have a higher risk of MACEs and require early therapeutic intervention and aggressive management.

202-207

Authors: Erdal Yavuz1 , Kasim Turgut1 , Umut Gulacti1 , Ugur Lok1 , Erman Altunisik2

Objective: To determine the characteristics and risk factors of drug dependence among patients who were administered drugs with addictive potential (DAP) in an emergency department (ED). Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study included patients who were administered DAP 3 or more times in the emergency room between September 1, 2019 and March 1, 2020. The demographic and baseline information were recorded. All the prescibed DAP, the reasons to use these drugs, secondary drug dependence, the department where DAP were first prescribed, types of doctors who preferred to prescribed DAP, and the risk factors for the development of drug dependence were determined. Results: A total of 3 000 patients were screened from medical records, and among them, 80 patients developed drug dependence. Drug dependence only developed for tramadol (n=57, 71.3%), diazepam (n=11, 13.8%), and biperiden (n=12, 15.0%). Tramadol was the most frequently prescribed drug (n=57, 71.3%). The most common reason for drug dependence was psychiatric disorders (n=29, 36.3%). Drug dependence developed in renal colic patients due to the administration of tramadol (n=7, 100%). On the contrary, dependence to biperiden were mainly developed in patients with psychiatric complaints (n=12, 41.4%). The rate of secondary drug dependence was 15% (n=12). Of the Biperiden users, 41.7% developed secondary drug dependence on diazepam. Most DAP were first prescribed in the ED (n=52, 65%), and the specialist preferred to prescribe DAP (n=43, 53.8%). For the development of dependence, the presence of renal colic (OR: 3.387, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.473-7.788, P=0.004) and low back pain (OR: 5.778, 95% CI: 2.779-12.014, P<0.001) were the risk factors. Conclusions: Most DAP were first prescribed in the ED compared to other departments, and specialist are preferred to use DAP. Tramadol is the most commonly used drugs caused drugdependence. Psychiatric disorder patients are easier to develope drug dependence. Furthermore, renal colic and low back pain patients needs more attention to avert drug dependence

216-220

Authors: Hong-wei Zhang1 , Li-you Wei1 , Ji-xuan Wang1 , Shu-zheng Liu1 , Dan Xing1 , Rui Zhang1 , Hui Guo1 , Li-juan Chen1 , Jing Zhang2

Objective: To observe the effect of Xuebijing , a complex traditional Chinese preparation, on inflammation and prognosis of patients with pneumonia. Methods: The patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia in the intensive care unit (ICU) were randomly divided into the control group and the treatment group with 35 cases in each group. Both groups were given routine treatment such as anti-inflammatory drugs, rehydration, expectorant, and nutritional support, while the treatment group was additionally given Xuebijing injection. Serum C-reactive protein (CRP), clinical pulmonary infection score (CPIS), acute physiology, and chronic health score Ⅱ (APACHEⅡ) were recorded before treatment, the 3rd and 7th day after treatment. The duration of antibiotic use, mechanical ventilation, ICU stay, and mortality during 28 days was recorded. Results: There was no significant difference in CRP, CPIS, and APACHEⅡ between the two groups before treatment (P>0.05). The improvement of CRP, CPIS, and APACHEⅡ in the treatment group was better than those in the control group on the 3 and 7 days after treatment, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). The duration of antibiotic use, mechanical ventilation, and ICU stay in the treatment group were less than those in the control group (P<0.05). The 28-day mortality of the treatment group was lower than that of the control group, but the difference was not statistically significant (P>0.05). Conclusions: Xuebijing injection can improve the inflammatory indexes of patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia, and can partly improve the prognosis.