Articles
Blood Transfusion Reactions
Blood transfusion can be a life-saving treatment of great clinical benefit but also carries several risks and potential associated problems including: Immunological complications Administration errors (‘wrong blood’ episodes) Infections (bacterial, viral, possibly...
The Story of Rene Laennec and the First Stethoscope
No single piece of equipment is more synonymous with the medical profession than the stethoscope. I can vividly remember wearing my brand new Littmann stethoscope with pride on ward rounds as a medical student, desperately trying to discern diastolic murmurs and extra...
The Beginners Guide to Non-Invasive Ventilation
Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) is the administration of ventilatory support without the use of an invasive airway measure (e.g. endotracheal intubation or tracheostomy tube). It can be applied using a variety of devices including facemasks, nasal masks, various...
Top 10 Medical Apps for Medical Students & Doctors
For medical students, learning how to diagnose and treat everyday illnesses, serious conditions and even life or death situations, is both complex and challenging. Fortunately, modern technology provides numerous medical apps for students and doctors. These help with...
What to Expect at Your Emergency Medicine Training Post Interview
The Emergency Medicine training post interview is a source of great anxiety for many candidates. This interview is the final stage before gaining a UK training post that will run through to Consultant level. In this month’s post, Dr. Usama Basit shares his experience,...
Plagues, Comets and Volcanoes
The sixth century AD was a tumultuous period of human history. It marked the end of Classical Antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages. Empires fell and new ones rose up to take their place. It was in this period that the legendary King Arthur is said to have...
I Wish I Had Heard This Advice Before Applying For An Emergency Medicine Training Post
I was not always interested in Emergency Medicine. Unsurprisingly, I used to be interested in surgery. I completed my medical school education in Pakistan, and did an elective placement in surgery at a Harvard hospital whilst still a medical student. It doesn’t get...
Imhotep – The First Physician
The ancient Egyptian civilisation was the first of the recorded great world civilisations. Little is known about the prehistoric societies that came before Egypt but it is assumed that they were steeped in superstition and that their ability to treat disease was...
Cardiovascular Insights 2
In our first post on cardiovascular insights, Dr. Hicks looked at the structure and function of the heart, understanding atrial fibrillation and congestive cardiac failure. We return again to his helpful site, to gain a deeper understanding of heart attacks and...
Spanish Flu: The Deadliest Pandemic in History
In the Spring of 2009 a new strain of influenza began to infect people in Mexico. Reports suggested that the outbreak had started in February due to farming practices at a pig farm and it was henceforth given the name ‘swine flu’. By April, cases had started to spread...
