No abstract

Objective: There are more than 3000 snake species in the world, about 30% of which are known to be venomous. Snake poisoning can cause serious mortality and morbidity. In this study, it was aimed to investigate epidemiologically and clinically the snake bite cases admitted to the emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Izmir. Material and Methods: Patients who applied to our emergency department with the complaint of snake bite between 2012 and 2022 were included in the retrospective observational study. The data of the patients were obtained by scanning the hospital electronic database. Vital signs, laboratory values, physical examination findings and outcomes of the patients were evaluated. Results: Of the 52 patients, 22 (42.3%) were female, 30 (57.7%) were male, and the mean age was 48±16. It was seen that the most cases occurred in the summer season and only 1 patient died in total. Snake bite was seen on extremity in 41 (78.8%) patients while 11 (21.2%) had non-extremity bites. There was a statistically significant difference in CK value, potassium value, local edema and diffuse edema incidence between the two groups according to the bite site. Conclusion: Higher CK, lower potassium level and more local and diffuse edema are seen in extremity bites compared to non-extremity bites.

Amaç: Bu çalışmanın amacı İzmir bölgesinde 3. Basamak bir hastanenin acil servisine başvuran akrep sokması vakalarının epidemiyolojik ve klinik özelliklerinin değerlendirilmesidir. Materyal Metot: Bu çalışma, retrospektif kesitsel bir çalışmadır. Çalışmada 2000-2022 yılları arasında acil serise akrep sokması nedeniyle baş vuran hastalar dahil edildi. Hastalara ait demografik ve klinik veriler ile laboratuvar test sonuçları hastanenin elektronik veri tabanında tarandı. Bağımsız iki grup arasındaki farkın karşılaştırılmasında student t test kullanıldı. P

Background/Aim: With the COVID-19 pandemic, the increase in the number of patients admitted to the emergency department has led to an increase in the need for intensive care and mechanical ventilation. Methods that can predict the development of serious disease will allow for a more accurate use of resources. This study was conducted to test the ability of the Quick COVID-19 Severity Index and the COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Score to predict serious disease development and mortality. Methods: This is a prospective cohort study. Among the patients admitted to the emergency department, those hospitalized due to COVID-19 were included in the study. The Quick COVID-19 Severity Index and COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Scores of the patients were calculated, and the ability of these scores to predict serious illness and mortality was investigated. Results: A total of 556 patients were included in this study. Development of critical illness, described as the need for non-invasive / invasive ventilation or the need for intensive care unit admission, was found significant when the Quick COVID-19 Severity Index was above 5 and the COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Score showed high risk (AUC: 0.927; P < 0.001, AUC: 0.986; P < 0.001, respectively). A Quick COVID-19 Severity Index over 6 and COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Score indicating high risk were found to be associated with mortality (AUC: 0.918, P < 0.001, AUC: 0.982, P < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Both the Quick COVID-19 Severity Index and the COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Score can be used to assess severity in COVID-19 patients in the emergency room. However, the COVID-GRAM Critical Illness Risk Score was more successful in differentiating low- and high-risk patients.