Emergency medicine clinics of North America
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Although most frequently presenting with lower abdominal pain, appendicitis, colitis, and diverticulitis can cause pain throughout the abdomen and can cause peritoneal and retroperitoneal symptoms. Evaluation and management of lower intestinal disease requires a nuanced approach by the emergency physician, sometimes requiring computed tomography, ultrasonography, MRI, layered imaging, shared decision making, serial examination, and/or close follow-up. ⋯ Appendicitis patients should be admitted. Diverticulitis and inflammatory bowel disease can frequently be managed on an outpatient basis, but may require admission and surgical consultation.
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Emerg. Med. Clin. North Am. · May 2016
ReviewDiarrhea: Initial Evaluation and Treatment in the Emergency Department.
Diarrhea generates a wide range of diagnostic considerations and has profound individual and public health significance. The setting and circumstances under which a patient presents with diarrhea drastically influences the concern brought to the encounter. ⋯ In resource-poor countries, the significance of diarrhea is even greater. This review focuses on diarrhea and its initial evaluation and management in the emergency department.
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Respiratory emergencies are 1 of the most common reasons parents seek evaluation for the their children in the emergency department (ED) each year, and respiratory failure is the most common cause of cardiopulmonary arrest in pediatric patients. Whereas many respiratory illnesses are mild and self-limiting, others are life threatening and require prompt diagnosis and management. Therefore, it is imperative that emergency clinicians be able to promptly recognize and manage these illnesses. This article reviews ED diagnosis and management of foreign body aspiration, asthma exacerbation, epiglottitis, bronchiolitis, community-acquired pneumonia, and pertussis.