December 18, 2024
Same hospital, different quality
Medicaid beneficiaries have more patient safety events than privately insured patients at the same facilities. A researcher talks about why that might be and what hospitalists can do.
What works, what doesn't for diagnosing meningitis, encephalitis
An expert at IDWeek offered advice on managing viral, bacterial, and autoimmune infections—including how to tell them apart.
Beta-lactam-first strategy linked with reduced mortality in sepsis patients
Giving beta-lactam therapy before vancomycin was associated with an 11% reduction in the odds of in-hospital death among patients with suspected sepsis, a review found.
Procalcitonin-guided protocol superior to standard care for sepsis antibiotic duration
Using procalcitonin as a biomarker resulted in reduced total antibiotic duration in patients with sepsis compared with a C-reactive-protein-guided protocol and standard care, according to results of a U.K. randomized trial.
Expert clinical decision pathway details diagnosis, management of myocarditis
The guidance from the American College of Cardiology includes a five-step care pathway for myocarditis, including strategies for diagnosis, risk stratification, and surveillance, and proposes four new stages of disease classification.
No neurologic benefit seen with liberal vs. restrictive transfusions in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage
A randomized clinical trial found that neurological outcomes at 12 months did not differ in critically ill patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage and anemia assigned to a liberal (mandatory at a hemoglobin level of 10 g/dL or lower) or restrictive (optional at a level of 8 g/dL or lower) transfusion strategy.
Take a quiz about the Dec. 11 issue!
Every week, ACP Hospitalist posts a question about the previous week's issue. See how well you remember what you've read compared to other readers.