Case Studies in Emergency Medicine

Book excerpt: A case-based book organized by the top 10 common complaints of patients presenting to emergency departments. This approach allows the reader to learn the pathophysiology of the major diseases, and analyze each case in a way that more closely approximates the clinical practice of medicine; not knowing which organ system is damaged or compromised before examining the patient. The cases are based on real patients and the diseases are either common in emergency practice, or are dangerous diagnoses not to be missed. The case descriptions include questions regarding the patient's presentation and basic information about the disease, illustrating key elements from the history, physical, and when necessary ancillary studies that help lead to a diagnosis. Each chapter ends with a flow diagram showing how diseases of different organ systems can present with similar initial complaints. This book is an ideal resource for medical students, residents and trainees in emergency medicine.