Emergency Procedures Clinical Guide

Emergency medicine and critical care
32 articles
In this Emergency Procedures Clinical Guide we cover how to perform several advanced procedures in emergency medicine. These procedures will help you diagnose and treat both common and rare conditions you’ll see in acute care medicine. We cover procedures related to joint infections, dislocations, many types of abscesses, and priapism. And of course, by the end, we also review how to perform the ultimate rescue airway procedure, the cricothyrotomy. We summarize the tools you need, how they’re used, and important pearls and neat tricks to make things easier.
In this Emergency Procedures Clinical Guide we cover how to perform several advanced procedures in emergency medicine. These procedures will help you diagnose and treat both common and rare conditions you’ll see in acute care medicine. We cover procedures related to joint infections, dislocations, many types of abscesses, and priapism. And of course, by the end, we also review how to perform the ultimate rescue airway procedure, the cricothyrotomy. We summarize the tools you need, how they’re used, and important pearls and neat tricks to make things easier.
Last update22nd Jan 2021
Chapter 1

All you need to know about arthrocentesis

Patients often present to the emergency department and outpatient practices complaining of painful and swollen joints. In the articles of this chapter, we review the indications and contraindications for performing an arthrocentesis. We summarize the tools required and describe the best techniques for successfully performing this procedure on the wrist, elbow, shoulder, knee, and ankle joints.

When should you consider arthrocentesis for your patient?

In this Medmastery article, learn about the indications and contraindications for an arthrocentesis procedure of a joint.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to perform arthrocentesis on a joint

In this Medmastery article, learn about the basic arthrocentesis procedure, and the tools you'll need to tap a joint.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to perform arthrocentesis of the knee

Does your patient need a knee arthrocentesis? Read about how to ensure a quick and painless knee tap here!

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to perform arthrocentesis of the ankle

Learn how to perform a quick and painless ankle tap with the basic ankle arthrocentesis procedure in this article.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to perform arthrocentesis of the wrist

Learn how to perform a quick and painless wrist tap with the basic wrist arthrocentesis procedure summarized here.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to perform arthrocentesis of the shoulder

Sharpen your emergency room skills with this article describing how to perform a quick and painless shoulder tap.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to perform arthrocentesis of the elbow

In this Medmastery Clinical Guide article, learn about the six simple steps that ensure a clean and painless elbow tap.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read
Chapter 2

The essential information about performing an anterior shoulder reduction

The shoulder is the most commonly dislocated joint in the body. The next time you’re watching a sporting event, you may have the opportunity to be a hero and make the diagnosis and reduce a dislocated joint without the need for sedation right there on the field. In these articles we review several ways of reducing a dislocated shoulder without needing sedation. After reading the articles in this chapter, you’ll even know how to reduce your own dislocated shoulder!

How to diagnose an anterior shoulder dislocation

Does your patient have a dislocated shoulder? Learn the physical signs and tests to perform to diagnose one in this article!

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to reduce a shoulder with the Cunningham technique

Are you treating a shoulder dislocation? Improve your reduction success rates with this article on the Cunningham technique.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to reduce a shoulder with the external rotation method

Not sure how to reduce a shoulder? Learn about the external rotation method, a technique that requires no sedation!

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to reduce a shoulder with scapular manipulation

Too busy in the clinic to reduce your patient's shoulder? Read this short article on how to perform a scapular manipulation.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to reduce a shoulder with the FARES technique

In this article on shoulder reduction, learn how to perform the FARES technique in the emergency room.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to reduce your own shoulder with the Davos technique

Can you reduce your own shoulder? Find out in this article on the Davos shoulder reduction technique.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

Post-reduction care for an anterior shoulder dislocation

Improve your patient management with this article on post-reduction care for an anterior shoulder dislocation.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read
Chapter 4

All you need to know about abscess drainage

If you work in an urgent care setting, you see a lot of soft tissue abscesses. In this chapter, we cover how to diagnose and treat a variety of abscesses, from basic soft tissue infections and paronychia, to more complicated peritonsillar and Bartholin gland abscesses. We review traditional incision and drainage techniques, and then introduce newer techniques like the loop drainage method.

How to drain a small skin abscess

Sharpen your emergency room skills with this Medmastery article on how to drain a small uncomplicated skin abscess.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 22nd Jan 20214m read

How to loop drain a large skin abscess

Sharpen your emergency room skills with this Medmastery Clinical Guide article on how to loop drain a large skin abscess.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to diagnose a peritonsillar abscess

In this Medmastery Clinical Guide article, learn how to recognize and diagnose a peritonsillar abscess from our expert.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20204m read

How to drain a peritonsillar abscess

Not sure how to treat a peritonsillar abscess? Check out this article to learn the techniques to painlessly drain this abscess.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to diagnose a Bartholin gland abscess

In this Medmastery Clinical Guide article, learn how to recognize and diagnose a Bartholin gland abscess from our expert.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read

How to drain a Bartholin gland abscess

In this Medmastery Clinical Guide article, learn how to treat a bartholin abscess with a tried-and-true drainage technique.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20202m read

How to drain a finger paronychia

Improve your in-clinic patient care with this article on draining a finger paronychia, a common finger infection.

By Siamak Moayedi, MDLast update 19th Nov 20203m read
Chapter 5

The essential guide to diagnosing and treating priapism

Did you know that there are two types of priapism? Did you know that one of them is a time sensitive emergency and your patient can’t afford to wait an hour for the urologist to show up? In the articles of this chapter we summarize the tools needed and review how to dilute phenylephrine for the management of priapism. After reading the articles in this chapter, you’ll be able to rapidly treat this emergency.

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