Practice Review: Patients Presenting with Symptoms of Odontogenic Infection
Urgent message: Odontogenic infections can pose life-threatening risk when swelling occurs in close proximity to the airway. It is essential that the urgent care provider is able to differentiate cases of relatively straightforward infection that can be managed in the urgent care setting vs true airway emergencies. Amandeep Kaur Bains, BDS(Hons) MFDS RCPS (Glasg); Awais Safdar Ali, BDS MJDF RCSEng; and Pavan Padaki, BDS, MFDS RCPS (Glasg), MBChB, MRCS, FRCS (OMFS) INTRODUCTION While odontogenic or “dental” infection is a subject scarcely covered in medical training, dental-related presentations worldwide are on …
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If Not Otitis Externa…Then What?
Urgent message: Complaints of ear pain in children are among the most common presentations in the urgent care setting. While acute otitis media and acute otitis externa are high on the list of possible causes, it is essential that the urgent care provider be prepared to differentiate these from other possible etiologies. Elizabeth Flasch, MSN, APNP, PNP; Sadia Ansari, MD; Timothy Martin, MD Citation: Flasch E, Ansari S, Martin T. If not otitis externa…then what? J Urgent Care Med. 2021;15(5):11-15. INTRODUCTION Ear pain is one of the most common presentations …
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Vaping-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) Presenting to Urgent Care
Urgent message: Respiratory complaints due to use of e-cigarettes or vaping may be difficult to distinguish from those associated with influenza and other common respiratory illnesses. It is essential for the urgent care provider to ask patients who present with any respiratory complaint about vaping history, and to have a sound understanding of next steps for patients suspected of having e-cigarette or vaping-associated lung injury (EVALI). Marco Propersi, DO and Anand Swaminathan, MD, MPH Citation: Propersi M, Swaminathan A. Vaping-associated lung injury (EVALI) presenting to urgent care. J Urgent Care …
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Urgent Care Provider Awareness of the Canadian Computed Tomography Head Rule: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Survey Study
Urgent message: As visits to urgent care after possible traumatic brain injury continue to rise, so does the importance of understanding which patients require a CT scan. Assessing the value of the Canadian Computed Tomography Head Rule in making that determination can raise the urgent care provider’s ability to make informed decisions in this regard, reducing the risk of unnecessary radiation exposure in patients who are determined to not need a CT. Jessicah Ray, DHSc, MS, PA-C and Jeffrey L. Alexander, PhD, FAACVPR, ACSM-CEP Abstract Background Despite years of training …
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Necessity (or Not) for Patient Transfer from Urgent Care to the ED Following Traumatic Brain Injury
Urgent message: With patients who have sustained head injuries related to both sports- and non–sports-related activities presenting to urgent care more than ever before, it’s essential for the provider to have a nuanced understanding of which patients truly require transfer or referral to a high-acuity level of care, and which can be managed successfully and safely in the urgent care setting. Anthony P. Doran, PsyD; Robert G. Graw, Jr., MD; Marc Weber, MD; Stanford Coleman, MD; Kevin Crutchfield, MD; and Daniel Pokrifka, ATC ABSTRACT Background Urgent care, family practice, and …
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