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SAEM Clinical Image Series: Eye Pain After Assault

carotid cavernous fistula

A 33-year-old male presents with intermittent blurry vision and left eye pain for 3 months, and a left-sided orbital headache for 1 day. He reports getting punched in the left side of the head during an altercation a few months ago. The eye pain is worse with ocular movements and is associated with bilateral conjunctival injection and white/green discharge from the left eye.

The patient was seen at another emergency department 3 months prior for the same symptoms. He was then found to have left-sided proptosis, visual acuity 20/60 in the left eye, no fluorescein uptake, and a normal fundoscopic exam. The patient was instructed to follow up with ophthalmology but did not. The patient denies fevers, chills, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

 

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By |2020-11-29T21:57:02-08:00Nov 30, 2020|Academic, Emergency Medicine, Ophthalmology, SAEM Clinical Images, Trauma|
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SAEM Clinical Images: Man vs Snow Blower

amputation

A 28-year-old man presents to the emergency department after a snow blower accident while at work. The patient was performing maintenance and he placed his hand into a clogged snow blower while the machine was still on. His hand subsequently got jammed in the snow blower, catching his second and third digits. The patient has an obvious amputation of the right third digit with the stump still connected to the hand via the flexor tendon, which is attached to the distal phalanx. He has pain in the right hand and lack of sensation to the distal phalanx.

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By |2020-11-23T08:34:03-08:00Nov 23, 2020|Academic, Emergency Medicine, Orthopedic, SAEM Clinical Images, Trauma|
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SAEM Clinical Image Series: An Incidental Finding

nail gun

A middle-aged man presented after a motor vehicle collision with a logging truck at 55 miles per hour with low back pain. A computed tomography scan (CT) of the abdomen and pelvis at an outside facility showed a burst fracture of the third lumbar vertebra (L3). The patient had no other complaints. Given the fracture, additional CT imaging was done and the above finding was discovered.

After the incidental finding was found, the patient reported a nail gun accident three years prior where he thought it had just recoiled and struck him in the lip and nose, causing a lip laceration and a minor bloody nose. The patient was seen in the emergency department. The laceration was repaired, and he was discharged without imaging. The patient denied any significant residual symptoms or personality changes. The patient had no idea that a nail had discharged from the gun and lodged in his face and brain.

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By |2020-11-13T12:27:23-08:00Nov 16, 2020|Academic, Emergency Medicine, HEENT, SAEM Clinical Images, Trauma|
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SAEM Clinical Image Series: Man vs Pneumatic Nail Gun

A 40-year-old male presents with injury to his left hand by a nail gun. While at work, the patient accidentally shot himself with a nail gun. The nail went through pneumatic air hose tubing, his third finger, and his thumb, keeping them all connected. He immediately felt uncomfortable in his left arm, and, upon arrival to the emergency department (ED), complained of swelling in his left arm extending to his neck. He feels shortness of breath and “fullness” in his throat.

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By |2020-09-28T16:36:16-07:00Sep 28, 2020|Emergency Medicine, SAEM Clinical Images, Trauma|
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IDEA Series: Homemade Escharotomy Kit

Normal knee radiology AP

Although escharotomy is rarely performed by emergency physicians during the initial management of burns, it is a life and limb-sparing skill important to know as a trainee and provider in emergency medicine [1,2]. There are few models made to accommodate procedural training, and the ones available are often cost-prohibitive. It is critical to have a method for learning and practicing this important procedure [3,4].

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By |2020-07-03T15:50:13-07:00Jul 6, 2020|IDEA series, Trauma|
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EMRad: Radiologic Approach to the Traumatic Knee

Radiology teaching during medical school is variable, ranging from informal teaching to required clerkships [1].​​ Many of us likely received an approach to a chest x-ray, but approaches to other studies may or may not have not been taught. We can do better! Enter EM:Rad, a series aimed at providing “just in time” approaches to commonly ordered radiology studies in the emergency department. When applicable, it will provide pertinent measurements specific to management, and offer a framework for when to get an additional view, if appropriate. We recently covered the elbow, wrist, shoulder, ankle, and foot. Next up: the knee.

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By |2020-06-24T07:34:48-07:00Jun 29, 2020|EMRad, Orthopedic, Radiology, Trauma|
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EMRad: Can’t Miss Adult Knee Injuries

knee radiology

Figure 1: Normal AP knee x-ray. Case courtesy of Dr Andrew Dixon, Radiopaedia.org, annotations by Stephen Villa MD.

Have you ever been working a shift at 3am and wondered, “Am I missing something? I’ll just splint and instruct the patient to follow up with their PCP in 1 week.” This is a reasonable approach, especially if you’re concerned there could be a fracture. But we can do better. Enter the “Can’t Miss” series: a series organized by body part that will help identify injuries that ideally should not be missed. This list is not meant to be a comprehensive review of each body part, but rather to highlight and improve your sensitivity for these potentially catastrophic injuries. Now: the knee.

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By |2020-06-24T07:43:05-07:00Jun 29, 2020|EMRad, Orthopedic, Radiology, Trauma|
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