Emergency medicine
Clinical teaching and practical ideas for your next study session.
Negative Urine Pregnancy Test, New Hypotension: Keep Ectopic in Play
A negative urine hCG lowers—but does not erase—the chance of pregnancy. When a patient with abdominal or pelvic pain becomes hypotensive and pale, learn when to send serum β-hCG, what bedside ultrasound can show, and why evaluation for bleeding must continue in parallel.
ED Risk Communication MCQs: Turn “Doubles the Risk” Into a Useful Number
Learn to spot when relative-risk wording hides the actual chance of a complication. Translate it into absolute natural frequencies with a shared denominator, then practise explaining what the estimate does—and does not—tell you.
Anaphylaxis MCQs: When Hives and Vomiting Meet Criteria
Normal blood pressure and clear lungs do not rule out anaphylaxis. In board-style stems, the key detail may be whether vomiting is persistent or severe—and which criteria the question uses.
AFE vs Massive PE: Why Early Coagulopathy Matters
In peripartum collapse, amniotic fluid embolism and massive pulmonary embolism can both cause hypoxemia, shock, and right-heart strain. Early overt DIC before blood loss is sufficient to explain it favors AFE—but is not diagnostic by itself.
Aneurysmal SAH: Why SBP <160 Is Not a Universal Target
With an unsecured aneurysm, the ED goal is controlled blood-pressure management—not a reflexive drop to one cutoff. Learn how to balance rebleeding concern, cerebral perfusion, and timely definitive treatment.
Warfarin in Acute Stroke: Keep Reperfusion Moving While INR Is Pending
A warfarin history can hold IV thrombolysis until the INR is known. The ED decision is what continues in parallel: controlled BP management, vascular imaging, and thrombectomy evaluation.
Mechanical Valve or Recent Stent? Frame the Reversal SAQ
A reversal SAQ is not one generic anticoagulation dilemma: a mechanical valve usually means warfarin, while a recent coronary stent usually raises antiplatelet questions. Learn to separate the drug decision from consent, proportionality, and the restart plan.
Adrenal Crisis in the ED: Preserve the Test, Treat Now
The key ED decision is not how to force an ACTH stimulation test into resuscitation, but how to preserve diagnostic clues without delaying hydrocortisone for an unstable patient.
Hypertensive Encephalopathy MCQs: Trace the Edema Mechanism
When an Emergency Medicine MCQ asks why cerebral edema develops with severe hypertension, trace autoregulatory failure to blood–brain barrier leak. Don’t anchor on a fixed MAP cutoff or confuse vasogenic swelling with ischemic cytotoxic edema.
ARDS on Chest X-Ray: Bilateral Opacities Are a Clue, Not the Diagnosis
In ARDS, bilateral opacities are the key imaging pattern—not a standalone diagnosis. Learn why patchy films can qualify, what the imaging criterion excludes, and why absent cardiomegaly does not prove noncardiogenic edema.
Thyroid Storm With AF and Crackles: Choose Beta-Blockade by Perfusion
In thyroid storm with AF and crackles, the key decision is not simply whether to use propranolol, but whether the circulation can tolerate beta-blockade. Learn how perfusion, cardiac assessment, and reversibility guide safer rate control.
CO Poisoning MCQs: Troponin, Confusion, and the HBO Call
A positive troponin can distract from ongoing confusion. Learn to prioritize urgent hyperbaric consultation while continuing 100% oxygen—and assess for ACS without diagnosing it from one lab.