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Emergency department physicians must be vigilant to accurately assess,
rapidly stabilize, and appropriately transport a severely injured
patient to the level of trauma care the patient requires. Instead of
viewing missed injuries as occurrences that result from inexperience or
incompetence, strategies to minimize the occurrence of missed injuries
and the resulting consequences are needed. All aspects of a trauma
system must work together to improve patient care.
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The emergency physician is faced with a wide variety of acute respiratory emergencies in daily practice. Noninvasive ventilation (NIV), a means of delivering positive pressure ventilation without the use of an endotracheal tube, is a powerful therapeutic tool in the hands of an informed physician. This article will delineate the physiology of NIV. It will provide guidelines for initiation, weaning, and possible complications of NIV. It also will highlight current research in the topic.
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"EMTALA: The Essential Guide to Compliance" from Thomson American Health Consultants, publisher of Emergency Medicine Reports, explains how the changes to EMTALA will affect emergency departments and off-campus clinics.
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Although cervical spine injuries are uncommon in children, a missed or
delayed diagnosis may have devastating consequences for the patient. A
thorough understanding of normal pediatric anatomy, injury patterns,
and children who are at increased risk for injury is critical for the
physician caring for the acutely injured child.
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Although cervical spine injuries are uncommon in children, a missed or
delayed diagnosis may have devastating consequences for the patient. A
thorough understanding of normal pediatric anatomy, injury patterns,
and children who are at increased risk for injury is critical for the
physician caring for the acutely injured child.
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Pediatric athletic head injuries are a significant problem, especially for emergency medicine physicians. The dedication of many young athletes to performance and their avoidance of restrictions makes it imperative that ED physicians recognize and give appropriate recommendations to parents and coaches of young athletes. The cumulative damage that may result from repetitive minor head trauma is not recognized by the majority of athletes, and the ED physician has the burden of conveying these potential risks to the family. This article provides a comprehensive review of sports-related head injuries and recommendations on grading of concussions, imaging, and the safe return of the athlete to competition.
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Child abuse can be difficult to recognize, especially in the often chaotic environment of the emergency department. As the leaders of the community and medical safety net that is the ED, emergency physicians play a unique role in detecting, treating, and preventing child abuse. This issue of Emergency Medicine Specialty Reports provides an update on the patterns, diagnosis, and treatment of physical child abuse injuries.