Improving Crotalidae polyvalent immune Fab reconstitution times. Quan AN et al Am J Emerg Med 2010;28:593-595.
The package insert for Crotalidae polyvalent immune Fab (CroFab [Protherics Inc.]) recommends that each vial be reconstituted with 10 mL of Sterile Water for Injection USP (SWI) and mixed by continuous gentle swirling (to avoid foaming). The insert goes on to recommend that …
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foydBgsse6Q
‘Cause people let me tell you
It sent a chill
up and down my spine
When I picked up the telephone
And heard that he’d died
out on the mainline.
Neil Young’s work at the time “Tonight’s the Night” came out was haunted by guilt and the deaths and drug problems of multiple friends, including “Crazy Horse” guitarist Danny Whitten and roadie Bruce Berry. Whitten died of heroin overdose on November 18, 1972; Berry — who is cited by name early in “Tonight’s the Night” — died also from heroin on June 4, 1973.
Bruce Berry was the brother of Jan Berry, of Jan and Dean.
Treatment of patients with cocaine-induced arrhythmias: bringing the bench to the bedside. Hoffman RS Br J Clin Pharmacol May 2010;69:448-457.
Cocaine can cause cardiotoxicity and arrhythmias by way of several mechanisms. Blockade of the sodium channel impairs myocardial cell depolarization, prolonging the QRS interval. Potassium channel blockade impairs repolarization, as reflected in a prolonged QT interval. Increased catecholamine …
Death by Poison in Elizabethan Theatre. Ricci GR Vesaslius: acta internationales historiae medicinae 2009;15(2):80-83.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4Nq7sFE3VY
This survey of poison in Elizabethan-age drama begins with what is of course the essential example — Hamlet’s encounter with his father’s ghost:
Ghost. Sleeping within my orchard,
My custom always of the afternoon,
Upon my secure hour thy uncle stole
With juice of cursed hebenon in a vial,
And in the porches of my ear did pour . . .
Levamisole-Induced Occlusive Necrotizing Vasculitis of the Ears After Use of Cocaine Contaminated with Levamisole. Buchanan JA et al. J Med Toxicol [published online: 12 June 2010]
A very large percentage of cocaine that enters the United States is contaminated with the veterinary anti-helminthic agent levamisole. A well recognized complication of levamisole exposure is agranulocytosis and development of opportunistic infections…
Attempted Suicide by Mail Order: Abrus precatorius. Jang DH et al. J Med Toxicol [published online 19 June 2010]
Seeds of the plant Abrus precatorius are decorative red-and-black beads often used for ornaments and rosaries. (Precare means “to pray”.) They contain the toxin abrin, that causes cell death by inhibiting protein synthesis. These seeds (also called …
Webicina.com has a very helpful compilation of emergency medicine resources (blogs, wikis, podcasts, etc) available on Web 2.0. Well worth checking out and exploring the links.…
Nicotine Addiction. Benowitz NL N Engl J Med June 17, 2010;362:2295-2303.
No abstract available
This review of nicotine addiction points out that while 70% of smokers claim they would like to quit, only 3% actually do give up smoking each year. To understand why this rate is so low, it is important to consider what exactly the drug does in …
The Worchester (Mass.) News Telegram reports that the clinical toxiciology unit at UMass Memorial Medical Center recently treated a case of sulfur mustard exposure. Two local fishermen were injured when they netted a leaking World War I canister containing the vesicant (blistering agent). Although the article mentions potential dire complicatons of contact with sulfur mustard — specifically, cancer and immune …
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