dr-exmedic.com

Although I have not found a good way to link directly to them, the nearly 300 abstracts being presented at the International Conference of Emergency Medicine are a veritable treasure trove of information that is interesting, but often unverifiable as the paper may not have been published yet–and I hate to do more with an abstract than merely speculate.  That doesn’t mean I can’t have a good chuckle over titles like:

A Randomized Controlled Trial to Compare Intranasal Diamorphine With Oral Morphine in Children With Acute Pain from Trauma

Diamorphine, of course, is better known in the States by the trade name given it by Bayer, heroin (according to one legend, so named because it was to be a “heroine” among drugs, rescuing people from the evils of laudanum addiction, and I think we know how well that worked out).  Given the social stigma associated with the drug, I can’t even imagine how you would approach a parent to get informed consent for such a study.

“Yes, ma’am, we’d like to offer you enrollment in a study about your child’s pain.  We’ll flip a coin, and if it comes up heads, we’ll give Johnny morphine by mouth, and if it comes up tails, we’ll give him heroin up his nose.”

On the plus side, though, I have no doubt it will be effective.  I’m certain if I snorted enough heroin, I wouldn’t be able to feel a thing….