Oxygen Therapy in Acute Care Medicine Oxygen therapy is a commonly used strategy in modern medicine. In most situations with declining oxygen saturations, clinicians are quick to use this technique. While effective in the setting of hypoxia, there are, however, some circumstances in which excess oxygen is indiscriminately administered for extended periods. In healthcare, there has been a significant shift from the concept of "more is better" to "less is more." There...

CORRESPONDENCE Racial Bias in Pulse Oximetry Measurement Michael W. Sjoding, Robert P. Dickson, Theodore J. Iwashyna, et al N Engl J Med 2020; 383:2477-2478DOI: 10.1056/NEJMc2029240 TO THE EDITOR: Oxygen is among the most frequently administered medical therapies, with a level that is commonly adjusted according to the reading on a pulse oximeter that measures patients’ oxygen saturation. Questions about pulse oximeter technology have been raised, given its...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Tocilizumab in Patients Hospitalized with Covid-19 Pneumonia Carlos Salama, Jian Han, Linda Yau, et al N Engl J Med 2021; 384:20-30DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2030340 Abstract BACKGROUND Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pneumonia is often associated with hyperinflammation. Despite the disproportionate incidence of Covid-19 among underserved and racial and ethnic minority populations, the safety and efficacy of the anti–interleukin-6 recep...

Research Letter December 14, 2020 Readmission and Death After Initial Hospital Discharge Among Patients With COVID-19 in a Large Multihospital System John P. Donnelly, Xiao Qing Wang, Theodore J. Iwashyna, et al JAMA. Published online December 14, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.21465 Although more patients are surviving severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there are limited data on outcomes after initial hospitalization. We therefore measure...

Research Christmas 2020: The Citadel Nonsensus in the treatment of proximal humerus fractures: uncontrolled, blinded, comparative behavioural analysis between Homo chirurgicus accidentus and Macaca sylvanus Sam Razaeian, Birgitt Wiese, Dafang Zhang, et al BMJ 2020; 371: m4429 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4429 (Published 14 December 2020)  Abstract Objective To investigate the inter-rater reliability of Barbary macaques compared with an expert g...

From The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics An EUA for Bamlanivimab—A Monoclonal Antibody for COVID-19 JAMA. Published online December 11, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.24415 The investigational neutralizing IgG1 monoclonal antibody bamlanivimab (LY-CoV555; Lilly) has been granted an FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for treatment of recently diagnosed mild to moderate COVID-19 in patients who are ≥12 years old, weigh at least 40 kg, and are at high ...

Research Christmas 2020: Dr Strange Effectiveness of hospital clowns for symptom management in paediatrics: systematic review of randomised and non-randomised controlled trials Luís Carlos Lopes-Júnior, Emiliana Bomfim, Karin Olson, et al BMJ 2020; 371: m4290 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4290 (Published 16 December 2020) Abstract Objective To evaluate evidence from randomised controlled trials and non-randomised controlled trials on the effecti...

Research Christmas 2020: The Citadel Toxicological analysis of George’s marvellous medicine: literature review Graham Johnson, Patrick Davies BMJ 2020; 371: m4467 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4467 (Published 10 December 2020) Abstract Objective To analyse the therapeutic effects and toxicity of the eponymous concoction described in Roald Dahl’s book George’s Marvellous Medicine. Design Literature review. Setting Two literature lovin...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE A Cluster-Randomized Trial of Hydroxychloroquine for Prevention of Covid-19 Oriol Mitjà, Marc Corbacho-Monné, Maria Ubals, et al N Engl J Med November 24, 2020DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2021801 Abstract BACKGROUND Current strategies for preventing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection are limited to nonpharmacologic interventions. Hydroxychloroquine has been proposed as a postexposure therapy to prevent coronavir...

Research Christmas 2020: Grey’s Anatomy The Babinski sign in Renaissance paintings—a reappraisal of the toe phenomenon in representations of the Christ Child: observational analysis François Sellal, Laurent Tatu BMJ 2020;371:m4556 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4556 (Published 10 December 2020)Cite this as:  Abstract Objective To investigate systematically the presence of the Babinski sign in paintings of the Christ Child by the greatest painters...