Category: Infectious Diseases Hepatitis D infections cannot exist without hepatitis B. The incubation period for hepatitis D is identical to that of acute hepatitis B. The presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and IgM anti-HBc are essential for the diagnosis.
Category: Infectious Diseases Hepatitis D is a “defective” single-stranded RNA virus that requires the machinery and assistance of hepatitis B to replicate. It is acquired as either a coinfection (with hepatitis B) or as a superinfection (acquired by a person with chronic hepatitis B).
Category: Infectious Diseases Risk factors for hepatitis C virus transmission include IV drug use, blood transfusions, organ transplantation, receiving clotting factors, unsterile tattoos (from prison) and vertical transmission.
Category: Infectious Diseases Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) is the first serum marker to appear and is detectable prior to the onset of clinical symptoms. It peaks approximately 12 weeks after exposure and should become undetectable within 24 weeks (6 months).
Category: Infectious Diseases In chronic hepatitis B infections, treatment options and the decision to treat are dependent on individual patient factors, such as viral load, presence of cirrhosis or hepatocellular cancer, HBeAg/HBeAb status, patient age and biochemical markers.
Category: Infectious Diseases Acute and chronic hepatitis B are diagnosed by specific serum markers and HBV viral load testing using PCR. Chronic hepatitis B is defined as the presence of HBsAg detectable in serum for 6 months or longer after symptom onset.
Category: Infectious Diseases Chronic hepatitis B is often asymptomatic but patients can have symptomatic flairs. If untreated, the disease can be spread to others, cause cirrhosis and predispose patients to hepatocellular carcinoma.
Category: Infectious Diseases Hepatitis B is a double-stranded DNA virus that causes acute and chronic hepatitis. The disease can be transmitted vertically at birth or through contact with infected bodily fluids, such as blood, semen and vaginal secretions.
Category: Infectious Diseases Symptomatic patients with Hepatitis A experience nausea, vomiting, malaise, abdominal pain and fever followed by scleral icterus and jaundice several days later. Symptoms often last for less than 2 months.
Category: Infectious Diseases Hepatitis A risk factors include travel to endemic regions, ingestion of contaminated food or water (raw shellfish), work in daycare centers (exposure to feces/diaper changing) and close contact with infected patients.
Category: Fundamentals Hepatitis A is a vaccine-preventable fecal-orally transmitted RNA virus that causes acute hepatitis. Hepatitis A is never chronic, is often asymptomatic in younger patients and causes fulminant hepatic failure in < 1 of cases.
Category: Fundamentals Heat illnesses are a spectrum of illnesses resulting from failure of the body’s normal thermoregulatory mechanisms after exposure to excessive heat. The milder forms include heat edema, heat syncope (or presyncope) or heat cramps.
Category: Fundamentals Dystonia is idiosyncratic and not a drug overdose. The extrapyramidal motor system depends on excitatory cholinergic and inhibitory dopaminergic neurotransmitters. Anticholinergic medications restore the excitatory–inhibitory balance.
Category: Fundamentals Dystonic reactions (can resemble seizures, psychosis, spasms or electrolyte imbalances) have been reported in 10% to 60% of patients treated with neuroleptic medications, most commonly when patients start or increase the dose of the drug.
Category: Fundamentals Any person who comes to an ED requesting care for a medical condition must be provided with a medical screening examination (MSE). The purpose of the MSE is to determine whether the patient has an emergency medical condition.
