Remove EKG/ECG Remove Emergency Department Remove Ultrasounds
article thumbnail

Putting Clinical Gestalt to Work in the Emergency Department

ACEP Now

On a busy day shift in the emergency department, our seasoned triage nurse comes to me after I finish caring for a hallway patient, “Hey, can you come see this guy in the triage room? This is the essence of emergency medicine. The “bundling” heuristic—if I send a troponin, then an ECG is needed. His vitals are fine…”.

article thumbnail

An undergraduate who is an EKG tech sees something. The computer calls it completely normal. How about the physicians?

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

This was sent by an undergraduate (not yet in medical school, but applying now) who works as an ED technician (records all EKGs, helps with procedures, takes vital signs) and who reads this blog regularly. The undergraduate's analysis: This EKG shows J point elevation of about 0.5-1 Edited by Smith He also sent me this great case.

EKG/ECG 127
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Another deadly triage ECG missed, and the waiting patient leaves before being seen. What is this nearly pathognomonic ECG?

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

Written by Bobby Nicholson, MD 67 year old male with history of hypertension and hyperlipidemia presented to the Emergency Department via ambulance with midsternal nonradiating chest pain and dyspnea on exertion. Pain improved to 1/10 after EMS administers 324 mg aspirin and the following EKG is obtained at triage.

EKG/ECG 140
article thumbnail

Four patients with chest pain and ‘normal’ ECG: can you trust the computer interpretation?

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

All initial ECGs were labeled ‘normal’ or ‘otherwise normal’ by the computer interpretation, and below are the ECGs with the final cardiology interpretation. 1-3] But these studies were very short duration and used cardiology interpretation of ECGs or emergent angiography rather than patient outcomes.

EKG/ECG 120
article thumbnail

A 50-something with chest pain.

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

This was sent by anonymous The patient is a 55-year-old male who presented to the emergency department after approximately 3 to 4 days of intermittent central boring chest pain initially responsive to nitroglycerin, but is now more constant and not responsive to nitroglycerin. This ECG was recorded in triage.

EKG/ECG 137
article thumbnail

Early repol or anterior OMI?

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

Written by Destiny Folk, MD, Adam Engberg, MD, and Vitaliy Belyshev MD A man in his early 60s with a past medical history of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and hyperlipidemia presented to the emergency department for evaluation of chest pain. See Ken Grauer's additional comments about this ECG at the end of the post!

EKG/ECG 121
article thumbnail

Wide Complex Tachycardia -- VT, SVT, or A Fib with RVR? If SVT, is it AVNRT or AVRT?

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

male with pertinent past medical history including Atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, cardiomyopathy, Pulmonary Embolism, and hypertension presented to the Emergency Department via ambulance for respiratory distress and tachycardia. Bedside ultrasound showed volume depletion and no pulmonary edema. SVT with aberrancy?

EKG/ECG 130