Objective: To investigate current use of Australian snake antivenoms and the frequency and severity of immediate‐type hypersensitivity reactions. Design: Nested prospective cohort study as part of the Australian Snakebite Project. Patients and setting: Patients receiving snake antivenom in Australian hospitals between 1 January 2002 and 30 November 2007. Main outcome measures: The use of CSL Limited antivenom; frequency and severity of hypersensitivity reactions to antivenom; premedication and treatment of these reactions. Results: Snake antivenom was administered to 195 patients, mostly for venom‐induced consumption coagulopathy (145 patients, 74%), followed by non‐specific systemic effects (12%), neurotoxicity (5%) and myotoxicity (4%). Antivenom was given to nine patients (5%) without evidence of envenoming or who were bitten by a species of snake for which antivenom is not required. The commonest antivenoms used were brown snake (46%), tiger snake (30%) and polyvalent (11%). The median dose was four vials (interquartile range, 2–5 vials), and 24 patients received two different types of antivenom. Immediate‐type hypersensitivity reactions occurred in 48 patients (25%); 21 satisfied our definition of anaphylaxis, with 11 moderate and 10 severe cases, including nine in which patients were hypotensive. The remaining 27 reactions were mild (skin only). Adrenaline was used in 26 cases with good effect. The frequency of reactions to tiger snake (41%) and polyvalent (41%) antivenoms was higher than that to brown snake antivenom (10%). Hypersensitivity reactions occurred in 11 of 40 patients receiving any form of premedication (28%) and in 2 of 11 given adrenaline for premedication (18%) versus 20 of 86 not receiving premedication (23%). Conclusions: Antivenom was used appropriately, and most commonly for coagulopathy. Hypersensitivity reactions were common, but most were not severe. The discretionary use of premedication was not associated with any reduction in reactions.

Background Falls are a leading reason for older people presenting to the emergency department (ED), and many experience further falls. Little evidence exists to guide secondary prevention in this population. This randomised controlled trial (RCT) investigated whether a 6-month telephone-based patient-centred program—RESPOND—had an effect on falls and fall injuries in older people presenting to the ED after a fall. Methods and findings Community-dwelling people aged 60–90 years presenting to the ED with a fall and planned for discharge home within 72 hours were recruited from two EDs in Australia. Participants were enrolled if they could walk without hands-on assistance, use a telephone, and were free of cognitive impairment (Mini-Mental State Examination > 23). Recruitment occurred between 1 April 2014 and 29 June 2015. Participants were randomised to receive either RESPOND (intervention) or usual care (control). RESPOND comprised (1) home-based risk assessment; (2) 6 months telephone-based education, coaching, goal setting, and support for evidence-based risk factor management; and (3) linkages to existing services. Primary outcomes were falls and fall injuries in the 12-month follow-up. Secondary outcomes included ED presentations, hospital admissions, fractures, death, falls risk, falls efficacy, and quality of life. Assessors blind to group allocation collected outcome data via postal calendars, telephone follow-up, and hospital records. There were 430 people in the primary outcome analysis—217 randomised to RESPOND and 213 to control. The mean age of participants was 73 years; 55% were female. Falls per person-year were 1.15 in the RESPOND group and 1.83 in the control (incidence rate ratio [IRR] 0.65 [95% CI 0.43–0.99]; P = 0.042). There was no significant difference in fall injuries (IRR 0.81 [0.51–1.29]; P = 0.374). The rate of fractures was significantly lower in the RESPOND group compared with the control (0.05 versus 0.12; IRR 0.37 [95% CI 0.15–0.91]; P = 0.03), but there were no significant differences in other secondary outcomes between groups: ED presentations, hospitalisations or falls risk, falls efficacy, and quality of life. There were two deaths in the RESPOND group and one in the control group. No adverse events or unintended harm were reported. Limitations of this study were the high number of dropouts ( n = 93); possible underreporting of falls, fall injuries, and hospitalisations across both groups; and the relatively small number of fracture events. Conclusions In this study, providing a telephone-based, patient-centred falls prevention program reduced falls but not fall injuries, in older people presenting to the ED with a fall. Among secondary outcomes, only fractures reduced. Adopting patient-centred strategies into routine clinical practice for falls prevention could offer an opportunity to improve outco...

The 'adequate analgesia' intervention significantly improved patient satisfaction. It provides a simple and efficient target in the pursuit of best-practice ED pain management.

The FI quantifies overall health status in people with scleroderma and predicts mortality. Whether the FI might help with decisions about who might best be served by more aggressive treatment, such as bone marrow transplantation, needs to be evaluated.

The difference between IV and IM routes of administration of widow spider antivenom is, at best, small and does not justify routinely choosing one route over the other. Furthermore, antivenom may provide no benefit over placebo.