Episode 922: Chest Tube Irrigation

Episode 922: Chest Tube Irrigation

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD

Educational Pearls:

  • Hemothorax: blood in the pleural cavity, most commonly due to chest trauma

  • Treatment: thoracostomy tube for blood drainage

    • helps to avoid clotting, scarring, and infection

  • A recent study looked at patients with hemothorax who either received or did not receive thoracic irrigation with saline

    • Evaluated incidence of secondary intervention, such as video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), for persistent hemothorax

    • Patients who received irrigation had a slight decrease in secondary intervention frequency

    • Multi-center study - all patients who had the irrigation procedure were at two centers

      • Study limitation: variability in approaches at each location could be a confounder

  • Technique that could potentially prevent future complications

References

  1. Carver TW, Berndtson AE, McNickle AG, et al. Thoracic irrigation for prevention of secondary intervention after thoracostomy tube drainage for hemothorax: A Western Trauma Association multi-center study. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. Published online May 20, 2024. doi:10.1097/TA.0000000000004364

  2. Yi JH, Liu HB, Zhang M, et al. Management of traumatic hemothorax by closed thoracic drainage using a central venous catheter. J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2012;13(1):43-48. doi:10.1631/jzus.B1100161

Summarized by Meg Joyce, MS | Edited by Meg Joyce & Jorge Chalit, OMS3

Donate: https://emergencymedicalminute.org/donate/

Jaksot(1150)

Podcast 999: Right vs Left Internal Jugular Access

Podcast 999: Right vs Left Internal Jugular Access

Contributor: Travis Barlock, MD Educational Pearls: What is an internal jugular catheter (IJ) and when do we use it? IJs are catheters that can be placed in either the left or the right internal jugu...

23 Maalis 2min

Podcast 998: Delayed Intubation After an Overdose

Podcast 998: Delayed Intubation After an Overdose

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: How long do we need to watch patients with a presumed overdose who were treated with naloxone in the field? A 2025 study in the Annals of Emergency M...

16 Maalis 3min

Podcast 997: D-Dimer

Podcast 997: D-Dimer

Contributor: Travis Barlock, MD Educational Pearls: D-dimer: fibrin degradation product used to evaluate for clot formation and breakdown Threshold: Elevated D-dimer indicates recent or ongoing int...

9 Maalis 2min

Podcast 996: Melatonin

Podcast 996: Melatonin

Contributor: Taylor Lynch MD Educational Pearls: Melatonin is an endogenous hormone released primarily by the pineal gland Also released by extrapineal regions in the retina, the GI tract, and some ...

2 Maalis 4min

Episode 995: UTI Diagnosis

Episode 995: UTI Diagnosis

Contributor: Travis Barlock, MD Educational Pearls:  Foul-smelling urine and cloudy urine are commonly misinterpreted as indicators of a UTI. However, these findings alone are not diagnostic. Criteri...

24 Helmi 5min

Podcast 994: Biphasic Anaphylaxis

Podcast 994: Biphasic Anaphylaxis

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: What is anaphylaxis and what are its treatments?  Anaphylaxis is a broad term for potentially life threatening allergic reactions that can progress t...

16 Helmi 3min

Podcast 993: Personalized Gene Editing Therapy

Podcast 993: Personalized Gene Editing Therapy

Contributor: Alec Coston, MD Educational Pearls: Disclaimer: this has nothing to do with the ER but is too cool to not talk about. Condition: Carbamoyl phosphate synthetase 1 (CPS1) deficiency Ra...

9 Helmi 6min

Tox Talks 2025 Recap 2, Methemoglobinemia and Errors

Tox Talks 2025 Recap 2, Methemoglobinemia and Errors

Contributors: Travis Barlock MD, Ian Gillman PA, Jacob Altholz MD, Jeffrey Olson MS4 In this episode, EM attending Travis Barlock and medical student Jeffrey Olson listen in to the two remaining cases...

4 Helmi 41min

Suosittua kategoriassa Tiede

tiedekulma-podcast
rss-mita-tulisi-tietaa
rss-poliisin-mieli
rss-duodecim-lehti
docemilia
mielipaivakirja
filocast-filosofian-perusteet
rss-metsantuntijat-podcast
rss-ylistys-elaimille
university-of-eastern-finland
utelias-mieli
radio-antro
rss-bios-podcast
rss-ranskaa-raakana
rss-astetta-parempi-elama-podcast
rss-tiedetta-vai-tarinaa
rss-luontopodi-samuel-glassar-tutkii-luonnon-ihmeita
rss-lihavuudesta-podcast
rss-sosiopodi