Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

When Neck Pain Arises From Spinal Epidural Abscess: A Case Report

Urgent Message: Though atraumatic neck pain is a common condition in the urgent care setting, spinal epidural abscess is relatively uncommon and may present without classic symptoms, which makes it a challenging diagnosis to make. Early recognition, timely imaging, and thorough documentation are essential to prevent a devastating outcome and to mitigate medicolegal risk. Key Words: Neck Pain, Spinal Infection, Cervical Epidural Abscess, Spinal Epidural Abscess, Medicolegal Risk, Anchoring Bias Eileen Chu, MD, MS; Lucille …

A Legal Quandary: Poor Care…or Malpractice?

Urgent message: Failure to consider subtleties and the context in which a patient presents can lead to insufficient differential diagnoses and, therefore, mis- or missed diagnoses that leave the patient at risk for poor outcomes and the provider at risk for litigation. Michael Weinstock, MD and Charles Pilcher, MD Back pain is usually back pain, whether it’s from a muscular strain or another self-limiting, non-serious cause. But there is potential danger lurking below the surface, …

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