EstaM
estam.bsky.social
EstaM
@estam.bsky.social
Reposted by EstaM
updated the IBCC chapter on BRASH

added a treatment checklist that walks you through resus of a sick BRASH pt

BRASH is uncommon & there are lots of moving pieces, so the checklist is a helpful cue to provide comprehensive treatment of all the BRASH components

emcrit.org/ibcc/brash/ #EMIMCC
December 30, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Reposted by EstaM
IBCC service update:

Checklists are being converted to numbered grey subsections

These are intended to function as a checklist to guide real-time patient management

Advantages:
☑️easier to read on phone
☑️more flexible (can include images/links)
☑️can be read & used by LLMs
December 28, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Reposted by EstaM
has there ever been a high-quality RCT that demonstrated clinically meaningful benefits from pulse-dose steroid (e.g., 500-1000 mg/day methylprednisolone) as compared to a moderate dose of steroid (e.g., 1-2 mg/kg/day prednisone)?

for *any* disease?
a man in a suit and tie is standing in front of a blackboard with the words " anyone ? anyone ? "
ALT: a man in a suit and tie is standing in front of a blackboard with the words " anyone ? anyone ? "
media.tenor.com
December 26, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Reposted by EstaM
New York state just recorded the highest number of flu cases in a week since it started recording in 2004.

😳

This includes the 2009 H1N1 pandemic (I was a pulm fellow in NY then and it wasn't a great time).
December 27, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Holiday gift for ya: the IBCC chatbot app 😁

Free AI chatbot searches IBCC contents

Answers seem pretty good & it links to relevent chapters for additional info

Works as an Ebook index on steroids

Created by emergency med folks at Columbia (credit to Joshua Farber & David Fisher) #EMIMCC
December 24, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Reposted by EstaM
G-POEM for Gastroparesis

😟Refractory GP hard to treat, miserable for pts

🤔Meta analysis of 23 studies, 871 pts s/p POEMs
Observational study

👍Long term benefit (5 years) in 81%. Predicting success was idiopathic, shorter duration, higher baseline severity

#GIsky #IMSky #Medsky

Poetry anyone?
December 15, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Reposted by EstaM
CDiff going to or coming from the dogs? (and cats)

🤔73yo recur Cdiff Rx'd with Van, Fidax, FMT, bezlotoxumab

👍Dogs + for Cdiff, dogs placed, no more Cdiff

🤔Studies have shown cats and dogs can harbor CDiff

🤔Consider in tough cases

(With apologies to dog/cat owners)

#GIsky #IMsky #Medsky
December 14, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by EstaM
when I use etomidate, I generally add fentanyl (analgesia) & midaz (prolongs sedation >5 min & reduces risk of awareness)

I wonder what the BP difference is between ketamine vs an etomidate-midaz-fent cocktail?? 🤔

my guess would be: not much

don’t use pain as a pressor
December 11, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Reposted by EstaM
🔥Fresh blog🔥 Hot take on RSI trial of ketamine vs etomidate

RSI & EvK trials both show *more* BP instability with ketamine *but* lower mortality with ketamine 🤔

Cause of BP drops with ketamine?
- Less pressor pre-intubation?
- Ketamine provides analgesia (eliminating pain-as-a-pressor)?

... #1/2
December 10, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Reposted by EstaM
My name is Paul and I am a coffee addict

🤔Review suggesting regular consumption reduces progression of liver disease, slowing progression to cirrhosis and HCC. (also reviews mechanisms)

👍Of benefit in pts with ALD, Viral hep, MASLD, and Cirrhosis

😀Can I have another cup??

#GIsky #IMSky #medsky
December 7, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Reposted by EstaM
The saga continues: Resmetirom for MASH

🤔1 yr extension Maestro-NAFLD ( Medscape, presented at ACG scientific meeting)

👍Child A MASH at 1 year res of clinically sig portal hypertension in 20%, year 2 28%

👍50% with 25% ⬇️ liver stiff

👍35% from F4 to F3

Not too shabby
#GISky #IMsky #MedSky
December 5, 2025 at 7:48 PM
Reposted by EstaM
this article is so unserious it feels satirical

whole-body MRI scans for worried well are horrifically low-value

they find incidentalomas, leading to downstream costs & iatrogenic harm

not sure what it's doing in a newspaper (if that's what we're calling the WaPo)

www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/ar...
December 5, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Prasad just got a 95% BSA 3rd degree burn in the NEJM 🍿
December 4, 2025 at 2:06 AM
Reposted by EstaM
treatment of severe/refractory hypoglycemia (IBCC update)

commonly messed up in practice & literature 🤦‍♂️

key points:

🧃 IV dextrose gtts are good but not super effective

🧃 PO carbs are more effective

🧃 IV steroid for refractory dz

🧃 structured escalation

🧃 rarely needs ICU admit #EMIMCC
November 30, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Prasad spent the pandemic braying about EBM & the "need" for RCTs to show that masks work

Now he's changing FDA policy based on a few old VAERS reports of dubious veracity

This is unhinged

(And anyone who actually cared about saving kids' lives would focus on measles & pertussis vax rates)
November 30, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Reposted by EstaM
updated IBCC chapter on severe influenza

most notable updates are on the pharmacology of newer antivirals (peramavir & baloxavir)

oseltamavir remains 1st line for patients without contraindications

(yeap, data on these isn't great, but we're stuck with them)

emcrit.org/ibcc/influen... #EMIMCC
November 29, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Reposted by EstaM
The truth and nothing but the truth...PEth

🤔Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) detects ETOH exposure up to 12 days after a binge, up to 4 weeks with heavy use

🤔Reported ETOH consumption may not be accurate

🤔Useful to help sort out MASLD; MetALD, ALD

See flow sheets below

#IMsky #GIsky #Medsky
November 28, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Patient with cirrhosis and INR of 3 needs a procedure

Please step away from the FFP

EVERY guideline & article agrees that FFP shouldn't be given for pre-procedure coag optimization (even high-risk procedures)

Plt & fibrinogen are more controversial

Discussion emcrit.org/ibcc/cirrhos... #EMIMCC
November 27, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Reposted by EstaM
updated the acute liver failure chapter

biggest change is increasing support for early CRRT to remove NH3 (to reduce elevated intracranial pressure)

now rec'd for clinically overt encephalopathy (Grade 2-4)

if admitting to ICU for ALF & encephalopathy, just dialyze

emcrit.org/ibcc/alf/ #EMIMCC
November 28, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Reposted by EstaM
GLP-1's...GI safety better than we thought??

🤔🔼 risk of cholelithiasis by 2cases/1,000
🔼 risk of reflux by 4/1,000

😀No apparent increase in cholecystitis, cholangitis, pancreatitis, obstruction, ileus

There ain't no perfect drug, but this one has real benefits

#IMsky #Medsky #GIsky
November 27, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Reposted by EstaM
A reminder: Early CCY after ERCP

🤔Although guidelines rec: Early CCY (same admission), only done about half the time

🤔Study: ACG Scientific Meeting

😒Biliary comps in 23% delayed, vs 0.8% early ccy

🔑: Risk NOT mitigated by sphincterotomy or stenting.

Carpe Diem:

#gisky #medsky #imsky
November 25, 2025 at 11:29 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole carries a very low (but real) risk of causing ARDS.

Duration of therapy is a risk factor (>7 days).

Could likely be minimized by avoiding unnecessarily long courses.

TMP-SMX is usually well tolerated, but can wreak havok (SJS, ARDS, drug-induced meningitis). #EMIMCC
November 24, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Reposted by EstaM
Save the kidneys! Outpt AKI in cirrhosis

🤔Defined AKI with labs up to 1 yr apart

🤔12% developed AKI in 3 year

🤔🔼 with ascites, HCC, ETOH,

👍Need to avoid/modify precpt causes: diuretics, GI losses ie with lactulose, nephrotoxins

Review of AKi emcrit.org/ibcc/aki/#top

#gisky #medsky #imsky
November 23, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Reposted by EstaM
New study design:

Multiply a small & uncertain number with a big number and you get a big number

The final big number looks, well, really big

This grabs headlines & gets cited

It doesn’t clarify underlying uncertainty, so it doesn’t actually illuminate anything

Mathematically rigorous clickbait
November 23, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Reposted by EstaM
According to the Trump admin, nursing isn’t a profession so they won’t qualify for student loans 🤬

We’re barely recovering from the last RN shortage and they want to create another one 😫

Literally zero patients survive the ICU without outstanding RN care.

www.newsweek.com/nursing-not-...
Nursing is no longer counted as a 'professional degree' by Trump admin
The Department of Education has excluded nursing as a "professional degree" program as it implements various changes to student loans.
www.newsweek.com
November 21, 2025 at 2:34 AM