• Eric M Campion and Robert C Mackersie.
• University of California, San Francisco and San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, California, USA.
• Curr Opin Crit Care. 2014 Dec 1;20(6):620-5.

Purpose Of ReviewTo provide an update on the recent developments and controversies in the assessment of the traumatically injured patient.Recent FindingsRecent literature suggests that: whole-body computed tomography (CT) is an effective strategy in more severely injured blunt trauma patients; 64-slice CT scanning now provides an effective noninvasive screening method for blunt cerebrovascular injury; the need for MRI imaging, in addition to CT, for the diagnosis of occult ligamentous injury of the cervical spine remains an unresolved controversy; point-of-care testing has made significant improvements in our ability to predict which patients will need a massive transfusion; and thromboelastography has enhanced our ability to tailor a hemostatic resuscitation more accurately.SummaryThe recent advances in the assessment of the multiply injured patient allow clinicians to more efficiently diagnose a patient's injuries and implement treatment in a more timely manner.

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