The 2015 REVERT trial compared a modified Valsalva manoeuvre with the standard technique in adults with stable supraventricular tachycardia. This appraisal examines conversion to sinus rhythm, the need for further treatment and practical questions about applying the findings in the emergency department.
JC The REVERT trial: Dip or doom for SVT in the Emergency Department? Read More
Should abdominal and pelvic CT be added to cancer screening after an unprovoked venous thromboembolism? This 2015 appraisal examines a Canadian randomised trial, missed cancers during follow-up and the limits of applying results from specialist clinics to other settings.
JC: Do all VTE patients need a CT for cancer? Read More
What counts as a normal respiratory or heart rate in a child? This 2015 appraisal examines emergency department centile data, compares published reference ranges and considers how rounded measurements and uneven age groups affect interpretation. It asks how confidently these observations can inform clinical assessment.
JC: Don’t Write off the Respiratory Rate – Part Two Read More
Persistent fast breathing in an otherwise well baby can be difficult to interpret. This 2015 review explores respiratory-rate measurement, clinical context and possible underlying causes, highlighting the importance of reassessment and follow-up when the initial examination or investigations do not explain the finding.
JC: Don’t Write off the Respiratory Rate – Part One Read More
Could patient-controlled analgesia improve ongoing pain relief after arrival in the emergency department? This 2015 journal club examines the two PASTIES trials, comparing abdominal pain and traumatic injury, and discusses their differing results, pragmatic design and the limitations of unblinded pain assessment.
JC: Pain free PASTIES in the ED. St.Emlyn’s Read More
What happens when James Lind’s scurvy experiment meets a modern critical appraisal checklist? Written for International Clinical Trials Day 2015, this deliberately playful review uses the historic study to explain randomisation, outcome definitions, statistical uncertainty and how expectations of clinical research have changed.
JC: An International Clinical Trials Day Special Read More
How much does describing chest pain as ‘typical’ tell us about the final diagnosis? Simon Carley reviews a 2015 observational study of clinician judgement, questioning the value of experience alone and examining how patient selection, specificity and the presentation of diagnostic performance affect interpretation.
JC: Are typical chest pain symptoms predictive of outcome? St.Emlyn’s Read More
Simon Carley selects ten trauma papers from 2014–2015, with an accompanying discussion with Simon Laing. The review spans transfusion, brain injury, prehospital care, airway management, haemorrhage prediction and thoracotomy, linking to the original studies and highlighting questions raised by this period’s trauma research.
Top 10 Trauma papers 2014-2015. St.Emlyn’s Read More
