Procedural Sedation and Analgesia Robert J. Vissers and James R. Miner The care of patients with painful conditions and the performance of painful diagnostic and therapeutic procedures are routine aspects…

Cervical Spine Fractures William R. Mower and Jerome R. Hoffman Each year, U.S. emergency physicians evaluate nearly 1 million patients for cervical spine injury (CSI). Two to three percent of…

Upper Airway Obstruction Louisa S. Canham and Jonathan Fisher Upper airway obstruction occurs from a variety of causes including foreign-body obstruction, infection, swelling, and bleeding. Airway obstruction from choking on…

Dental Emergencies Rawnica L. Ruegner Dental emergencies prompt almost 3 million emergency department (ED) visits nationally, accounting for 0.7% of all ED patients (1). Factors such as poverty, a lack…

Diplopia Kurt Brueggemann and James A. Comes Diplopia is an uncommon and frightening emergency department (ED) complaint. The differential diagnosis is complex and evaluation may require neuroimaging or consultation with…

Syncope Shamai A. Grossman and Christopher M. Fischer Syncope is a sudden and transient loss of consciousness that is associated with a loss of postural tone and that resolves spontaneously…

Trauma in Older Adults Timothy F. Platts-Mills and Sasha D. Adams The increase in the number of active and independent older US adults has led to an unfortunate corresponding increase…

Altered Mental Status and Coma J. Stephen Huff and Marcus L. Martin Viewed from a physiologic perspective, consciousness is the sum of the activities and interactions of the reticular activating…

Penetrating Abdominal Trauma Michael J. Breyer Penetrating trauma to the abdomen continues to be a major cause of trauma and mortality in the United States. Death resulting from trauma is…

Ballistics Jason Imperato and Leon D. Sanchez Ballistics is the scientific study of the characteristics of projectiles, how they move in flight, and how they impart tissue damage. The majority…