A 39-year-old man presented to the emergency department after intentionally ingesting 50 tablets of metformin 1,000 mg. The reported time of ingestion was 6 h prior to arrival. Vital signs were: temperature, 37.4°C; pulse, 94 beats per minute; blood pressure, 117/74 mmHg; respirations, 16/min; and oxygen saturation, 96 % on room air. Gastric lavage was performed, and a single dose of activated charcoal was given. His initial serum lactate was 4.3 mmol/L (normal00.67-1.8 mmol/L). The patient had a negative urine drug screen, and acetaminophen and salicylate levels were below detection limits. The patient was admitted for monitoring of lactic acidosis.Twenty hours after arrival, the patient became hypotensive with a blood pressure of 85/45 mmHg. Arterial blood gas analysis revealed a pH of 7.20, pCO 2 19 mmHg, and bicarbonate HCO 3 of 6 mmol/L. A repeat serum lactate at this time was 20 mmol/L, and a basic metabolic panel showed sodium of 134 mmol/L, potassium 3.8 mmol/L, chloride 98 mmol/L, bicarbonate 16 mmol/L, BUN 32 mg/ dL, and creatinine 1.3 mg/dL; the calculated anion gap was 20 mmol/L. A 1-L normal saline bolus was administered, and serum alkalinization was initiated with a sodium bicarbonate drip.

Background Phencyclidine (PCP) is a synthetic compound derived from piperidine and used as an anesthetic and hallucinogenic. Little has been recently published regarding the clinical presentation of PCP intoxication. PCP use as a recreational drug is resurging. Objective Our objective was to describe clinical findings in patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) under the influence of PCP. Methods This was a case series study conducted at a tertiary care center with an annual census of 100,000 patients/year. Emergency physicians, residents, physician assistants, and research assistants identified patients with possible PCP intoxication. Self-reported PCP use, report by bystanders or Emergency Medical Services (EMS) staff, was used in this process. A structured data collection form was completed, documenting both clinical and behavioral events observed by the treating team during the ED visit. Results We collected data on 219 patients; 184 were analyzed; two patients were excluded secondary to incomplete data. The mean age of patients was 32.5 years (±7 years) with 65.2 % being males. PCP use was self-reported by 60.3 % of patients. Of the 184 patients, 153 (83.1 %) received a urine drug screen (UDS); 152 (98.7 %) were positive for PCP. On arrival, 78.3 % of patients were awake and alert, and 51.6 % were oriented to self, time/date, and place. Mean physiological parameters were the following: heart rate 101.1 bpm (±24.3), RR 18.9 bpm (±3.4), BP 146.3 (±19.4)/86.3 (±14.0) mmHg, 36.9°C (±0.5), and pulse oximetry 98.2 % (±1.9).Clinical findings were the following: retrograde amnesia in 46 (25 %), horizontal nystagmus in 118 (64.1 %), vertical nystagmus in 90 (48.9 %), hypertension in 87 (47.3 %), and agitation in 71 (38.6 %). Concomitant use of at least one other substance was reported by 99 (53.8 %) patients. The mean length of stay in the ED for all subjects was 261.1 (±172.8) minutes. Final disposition for 152 (82.6 %) patients was to home. Of the 184 patients, 14 (7.6 %) required admission; 12 were referred to Crisis Response Center. Conclusion Patients with PCP intoxication tended to be young males. The prevalent clinical signs and symptoms were the following: retrograde amnesia, nystagmus, hypertension, and psychomotor agitation. Co-use of other substances was the norm. Most patients presenting to the ED with PCP intoxication do well and can be discharged home after a period of observation.

The PSS was developed as a tool to document encounters with poisoned patients. However, it is used infrequently and, when applied, has been misused or modified from its original form. In its current form, it has limited clinical utility and likely cannot be broadly applied to many exposures due to their unique clinical circumstances. With better global collaboration among medical toxicologists, it is possible that a modified score could be developed for use clinically or as a research instrument.

The American College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT) 2020 Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) was scheduled to be held in New York City, March 12-15, 2020, and had the largest conference registration in the history of ACMT_s ASM. In the week prior to the conference, the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City and the USA was becoming apparent. On the first day of the conference, organizers canceled the live portion of the meeting and converted the conference into an entirely virtual meeting. We discuss the challenges of holding a virtual conference, future directions for online meetings, and why our conference was ultimately successful.

Objectives: To prevent unnecessary antivenom administration in crotaline snakebite, observation for progression is recommended for the patient with minor envenomation whose condition is stable and not progressing. The objective of this study was to determine the association between the time from bite to initial antivenom administration (Time AV ) and the total amount of antivenom administered (Total AV ) and to determine what proportion of patients did not have progression of the envenomation syndrome and did not receive antivenom.Methods: This was a retrospective chart review of patients presenting with crotaline snakebite within 24 hours from 2009 through 2012. Blinded dual-chart abstraction and strict data point definitions were used. Spearman correlation was used to determine the association between Time AV and Total AV . A general linear model was used to examine this association using Time AV categorized to early and late administration, adjusted for likely confounders. Confounders included age, extremity involved, initial severity, and year of envenomation.Results: Ninety-five eligible patients were analyzed with 45 (47%) males and a mean (AESD) age of 36.5 (AE21.1) years. Eighty-five (89%) received antivenom, with a median Time AV of 3.3 hours (interquartile range [IQR] = 2.5 to 5.2 hours). The median Total AV was 10 vials (IQR = 6 to 14 vials). The univariate analysis showed a small but statistically significant decrease in Total AV given to patients treated greater than 6 hours from bite (r = -0.26, p = 0.015). The multivariate analysis resulted in no significant relation between early or late Time AV and Total AV (p = 0.10) after adjustment for confounders. Most minimal envenomation syndromes (80%, or 41 of 51) progressed to moderate grade envenomations.Conclusions: Time AV was not associated with Total AV when adjusted for likely confounders and supports current recommendations to observe for progression in minor envenomation. The majority of envenomations progressed, resulting in only a small proportion of patients not eventually receiving antivenom. The authors recommend observation in an environment where the patient can be adequately reassessed for progression of the envenomation.ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2015;22:308-314