A Tiny Fish Could Hold the Secret to Healing Human Hearts
Meet the zebrafish, a tiny aquarium dweller with an extraordinary superpower: it can regrow up to 20% of its heart after injury, something we humans have only dreamt about. While the human hearts form scar tissue after damage, these little swimmers can fully rebuild their cardiac muscle in just 60 days, complete with new blood vessels and perfectly functioning tissue – all while going about their daily fish business as if nothing happened.
What makes this discovery even more exciting is that zebrafish share a surprising amount of genetic similarity with humans, making them the perfect test subjects for understanding how we might one day repair damaged hearts. Scientists are especially excited because these fish are basically like tiny, swimming laboratories – their see-through embryos make it easy to watch the healing process in action, and they're surprisingly low-maintenance research partners (no expensive fish food required!).
...anyway, enough about fish, let's get on to the 99th edition of the ResusNation newsletter!!!
Welcome to the 99th edition of ResusNation!
Stop Torturing Your Patients
In Respiratory Distress
After more than a decade since completing my critical care fellowship, I've come to a controversial observation: ABGs should not be used to determine the need for intubation. This isn't based on PubMed articles or formal studies, but rather on countless encounters with respiratory distress patients across emergency rooms, hospital floors, and ICUs. The decision to intubate should be purely clinical – if a patient is somnolent and not protecting their airway, or in respiratory distress with hypoxemia, they need intubation, period.
Here's what really frustrates me about our reliance on ABGs: we're causing significant pain to patients who are already struggling to breathe, and for what? It has zero additional clinical value. The only somewhat valid reason I've seen for ordering an ABG is to buy time when clinicians are uncertain about their next steps. But let's be honest – if your patient is breathing comfortably despite low oxygen saturation, they don't need intubation, and no blood gas result will change that clinical reality.
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Awake Intubation
What does it take to master awake intubation? In this episode, Dr. Laura Duggan, Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine at the University of Ottawa, demystifies this critical skill. From tackling anatomically and physiologically difficult airways to the magic of proper topicalization, she shares actionable insights gained from over two decades in anesthesia and emergency medicine. Discover why sedation often does more harm than good and learn how to make patients part of the team during this high-stakes procedure. Tune in and take your airway management to the next level!
Check out this video now and watch the entire ResusX: ReVolved conference for more content from Laura and our other all-star faculty!
Watch ResusX:ReUnion on Replay!
Tomorrow, October 8th, we are launching the replay for ResusX:ReUnion. If you weren't there live for ResusX:ReUnion then you missed an amazing experience with 3 days of education and over 50 faculty members. Fortunately for you, we got the whole incredible event captured on video and you can start watching tomorrow.
These videos were recorded in high-definition and have remastered audio. When you register you'll also have access to high-yield summaries that you can download to take with you on the go. You'll also be able to earn CME or CEU credits as you watch.
And because I'm grateful that you are a newsletter subscriber, I'm giving you early-bird access with a coupon to save over 20% off the registration price. Starting tomorrow, use code "SAVE20" at checkout to get your discount. Please note, we only have a limited number of these coupons so don't wait too long to register.
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The Unruly Trauma Patient: To Sedate or Intubate?
In this episode, Dr. Fred Gmora shares his expert insights into managing combative trauma patients. From rapid sedation with ketamine to maintaining spontaneous respirations, he explains how to stabilize patients and keep the trauma bay under control. Whether you’re in the ED or a trauma center, this episode is packed with essential tips to save lives and manage chaos effectively. Don’t miss it!
Check out this lecture from Fred at ResusX: Golden Hour. If you're craving more, dive into over 60 life-changing talks from our ResusX: ReUnion conference, featuring lectures from world-class faculty. Plus, they’re available on replay forever! Get 20% off with this link.
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