Category: Toxicology
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Book Review: Toxicology in a Box
Toxicology in a box is a pretty cool toxicology learning tool. The box contains 154 flashcards with classic and memorable drawings of important poisonings and toxidromes. On the reverse of each card, there is additional important information about sources, classic scenarios, signs/symptoms, mechanisms of action, treatment and clinical pearls.The cards are hilarious (sometimes!) and memorable. It’s really…
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Hypoxia: Critical but Often Poorly Understood Concepts
Hypoxemic Hypoxia Arterial hypoxemia almost always points to either a reduction of the inspired oxygen tension or to a lung problem. When troubleshooting a hypoxemic patient, it sometimes helps to investigate the problem by breaking it down in an organized and stepwise fashion: Hardware and access issues: these are more or less obvious plumbing problems which…
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Success with DRESS: What You Need to Know about Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms
Introduction Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS) is a potentially life-threatening medical emergency. Patients present with fever, rash and internal organ dysfunction or failure. Organs affected include liver (hepatitis, fulminant hepatic failure), lungs (pneumonitis), kidneys (renal failure, nephritis), brain (encephalopathy and/or aseptic meningitis), and heart (myocarditis, heart failure). Endocrine dysfunction such as hyperthyroidism,…
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Mnemonic for Side Effects of Antimycobacterial Agents
Here is a mnemonic that will help you remember the side effects of antimycobacterial agents: Rifampin cause Red discoloration of urine and tears, which can lead to patient anxiety and ruined contact lenses. Patients should be counseled about this ahead of time and should be advised not to wear contact lenses while being treated with…
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How to Solve Triple Acid-Base Problems Quickly in Your Head
Introduction You can solve triple acid-base problems with basic arithmetic and straightforward logic. As an example, let’s work through the following rather classic triple acid-base problem: An afebrile, atraumatic 26-year-old male with no past medical history is brought to the emergency department because of a three hour history of altered mental status, vomiting and vertigo. The physical examination is…