Category Medical Specialty

the steak is stuck…

the case. a 36 year old male presents to your ED at 2am with retrosternal pain and concern that last nights steak “got stuck and didn’t go down”. He has vomited once and now continues to spit out saliva as…

hot & spotty #2…

the case. A 14 year old boy is bought to ED with a 4 day history of fevers. His parents are concerned as this rampant red rash has rapidly spread across his body overnight….

Cliff Reid RAGE team

catching the culprit…

the case. a 32 year old male presents to ED with a 4 hour history of retrosternal chest pain. He has had the pain since midnight and it “just isn’t going away”. This is his ECG…

John Hinds Death is a Wanker

straightening the spiral…

the case. a 2 year old male is carried into your ED screaming. He is horribly distressed and trying to reach down to grab at his right thigh. His parents report that he was standing outside watching his older brother…

hot & spotty…

the case. A mother brings her 18 month old child to your emergency department with a 24 hour history of fevers. She is now worried that her daughter has developed these little red spots.

a little low…

the case. A 48 year old female arrives to ED via ambulance following an intentional overdose. Her husband discovered her taking tablet after tablet in the bathroom at home. She has a history of depression & diabetes and reports feeling…

arcanum veritas LITFL 340

CPR makes you Undead

There have been some great ‘hands only’ CPR campaigns in the past year or so, with Vinnie Jones from the UK and Ken Jeong from the USA using disco to save lives. These were both a step forward from previous…

arcanum veritas LITFL 340

A Ward Round with the Professor of Surgery

The registrars, house staff and the medical students waited in line. Each had an eye on the clock above the nurse’s station. In one minute it would be 6.30 pm. Right on cue, the double doors to the ward swung…

no retreat, no reversal…

the case. a 79 year old female returns to ED with left sided chest pain & dyspnoea. She was recently admitted following a fall with rib fractures (including a flail segment) and a small haemothorax.

palpitations & presyncope…

the case. A 54 year old female presents to ED with an ‘odd sensation’ in her chest. This has been occurring intermittently for 2 months but has now increased in frequency & severity. She reports 3 episodes earlier today associated…

nasty big pointy teeth…

the case. A 2 year old infant is bought to your ED with a painful right hand. She claims to be have been bitten by the family dog 2 days earlier…