Emergency Medical Minute28 Dec 2020

Podcast 625: High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE)

Contributor: Tom Seibert, MD

Educational Pearls:

High altitude cerebral edema (HACE) is the end stage of acute mountain sickness and is diagnosed when patients develop neurologic dysfunction, ataxia, and altered mental status.
The pathophysiology of HACE is thought to be due to increased cerebral blood flow and increased capillary permeability causing vasogenic edema and brain swelling
HACE is linked to extreme altitude
Rapid descent should be done as soon as possible for this potentially fatal condition
Oxygen can be supportive
Dexamethasone is also typically indicated (8mg initially followed by 4 mg every 6 hours)

Editor's note: HACE can occur at altitudes as low as 8000 feet so don't automatically assume it can't/doesn't happen in the US

References

Jensen JD, Vincent AL. High Altitude Cerebral Edema. 2020 Aug 26. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2020 Jan–. PMID: 28613666.

Hackett PH, Yarnell PR, Weiland DA, Reynard KB. Acute and Evolving MRI of High-Altitude Cerebral Edema: Microbleeds, Edema, and Pathophysiology. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2019 Mar;40(3):464-469. doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A5897. Epub 2019 Jan 24. PMID: 30679208; PMCID: PMC7028681.

Summarized by Jackson Roos, MS4 | Edited by Erik Verzemnieks, MD

The Emergency Medical Minute is excited to announce that we are now offering AMA PRA Category 1 credits™ via online course modules. To access these and for more information, visit our website at www.emergencymedicalminute.com/cme-courses/ and create an account.

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(1177)

Podcast 1022: Emergent Dialysis

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: When a patient who missed dialysis presents to the emergency department, our clinical concern is who needs to be admitted to the hospital for emerge...

21 Sep 4min

Podcast 1021: Pulmonary Edema From Naloxone Administration

Contributor: Travis Barlock, MD Educational Pearls: What is pulmonary edema? Pulmonary edema is the accumulation of fluid initially in the interstitium of the lungs, that when severe enough can als...

14 Sep 4min

Podcast 1020: Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)

Contributor: Alec Coston, MD Educational Pearls: Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) Common inner ear condition that can cause dizziness Diagnosis of BPPV can help to avoid admissions and ...

7 Sep 6min

Podcast 1019: Trauma Blunt Cardiovascular Injuries (BCVI)

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Blunt cerebrovascular injury (BCVI) BCVI is a traumatic injury to the carotid or vertebral arteries Patients may initially have no neurologic sy...

31 Aug 3min

Podcast 1018: Occult Ventricular Fibrillation on Echocardiography

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Big question in cardiac arrest: is the rhythm shockable? Shockable: ventricular fibrillation (VF) and pulseless ventricular tachycardia Non-sho...

24 Aug 2min

Podcast 1017: CPR Hand Placement

Contributor: Taylor Lynch, MD Educational Pearls: CPR is an important life-saving measure designed for anyone to perform. Chest compressions works by two mechanisms: Cardiac pump: Direct squ...

17 Aug 2min

Podcast 1016: Hypokalemia

Contributor: Meghan Hurley, MD Educational Pearls: What is hypokalemia? Hypokalemia is when the measured blood level of potassium falls below 3.5 mEq/L (normal 3.5 - 5.2 mEq/L). Can generally be ...

10 Aug 6min

Podcast 1015: Calcium in Hyperkalemia

Contributor: Meghan Hurley, MD Educational Pearls: What is hyperkalemia? Hyperkalemia is when the measured blood level of potassium reaches above 5.2 - 5.5 mEq/L (normal 3.5 - 5.2 mEq/L). What ar...

3 Aug 7min