Comfort scores instead of pain scores as a possible tool for pain and analgesia reduction in the emergency department: A randomized controlled clinical trial.

Introduction: Frequent use of the term 'pain' in clinical settings has been associated with the nocebo effect, potentially leading to increased pain perception and unnecessary analgesic use. This study aimed to explore the impact of cognitive reframing, employing comfort scores (CS) instead of pain scores (PS), on analgesic desire and usage in adults presenting to the emergency department (ED) with abdominal pain.

Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, ED patients with abdominal pain were assigned to either the PS group (assessing pain using a pain score) or CS group (assessing comfort using an inverted pain score).

Should we perform a FAST exam in haemodynamically stable patients presenting after blunt abdominal injury: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Focussed Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) is a bedside ultrasonography technique used to detect free intraperitoneal fluid in patients presenting with blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) in the emergency department.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study we investigated the potential of FAST as a risk stratification instrument in haemodynamically (HD) stable patients presenting after BAT by establishing the association between the FAST exam result and final outcome. An adverse outcome was defined in this context as the need for either a laparoscopy/laparotomy or an angiographic embolization or death due to abdominal injuries).