December 2019; papers of the month

Well the year has flown by and it's already time for December's Papers of the Month Podcast! Head injuries are a huge work load for those of us involved in Emergency Care. Identifying those at risk of deterioration from a traumatic brain injury is a priority, as early intervention and prognostication can make a huge difference to patient outcomes. CT scanning is relatively easy to access and with it investigation creep has lowered our threshold of investigation and use of radiology resources; first up we have a look at a paper that looks at the potential benefits from employing a number of different guidelines in identifying the patients with traumatic brain injury, whilst comparing the risk of over investigation. Next up we have a look at the commonly made diagnosis of urinary tract infection in the older population and a review paper that will help you make the right diagnosis when it's present and not over diagnose when not. Finally we have a think about the potential benefit of a fluid bolus during induction of anaesthesia for our patients undergoing RSI; can a 500 mL fluid bolus prevent cardiovascular collapse? And we also hear the authors insights on the great RCT. Make sure to get in touch with any comments on any of the reviews, and importantly make sure you check out the papers and draw your own conclusions. Enjoy! Simon & Rob