Vital signs are amongst the first pieces of patient information available to you in the acute setting. They play a role in many of the decisions we make in emergency medicine. Unfortunately, vital signs can be influenced by a number of factors and there are many situations in which vital signs are less than reliable. Abnormal vital signs can be an indicator of an underlying pathology, a variant due to medication, or a …
Approach to Pain Management in the ED
Pain is one of the most common concerns of patients presenting to the ED. Achieving excellent analgesia while minimizing side effects is an important and nuanced skill to develop. The goal of emergency pain management is not to completely eradicate pain but rather, reduce pain to an acceptable level allowing for safe discharge/return to daily activities, or to bridge until inpatient care can be arranged1,2. There are a number of principles of pain …