List of medical emergencies

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The following is a list of symptoms and conditions that signal or constitute medical emergencies and require immediate first aid if available.

Contents 1 Injury and illness 2 Cardiac and circulatory 3 Metabolic 4 Neurological 5 Ophthalmological 6 Psychiatric 7 Respiratory 8 Shock 9 Urological, andrological, gynecologic, and obstetric 10 References

[edit] Injury and illness

• Appendicitis (leading to peritonitis)
• Chest pain or sudden severe abdominal pain
• Cholecystitis
• Compound fracture
• Drug overdose or Withdrawal
• Electric shock
• Eye or ear injury (may not likely itself be life-threatening, but immediate action may still be essential to save sight or hearing)
• Gangrene
• Hyperthermia (heat stroke or sunstroke)
  • Malignant hyperthermia
• Hypothermia or frostbite
• Head trauma
• Intestinal obstruction
• Malaria ^[1]
• Pancreatitis
• Peritonitis
• Poisoning
  • Food poisoning
  • Venomous animal bite
• Septic arthritis
• Septicaemia blood infection
• Severe burn (including scalding and chemical burns)
• Spreading wound infection
• Suspected Spinal injury

[edit] Cardiac and circulatory

• Air embolism
• Aortic aneurysm (ruptured)
• Aortic dissection
• Bleeding
  • Hemorrhage
  • Hypovolemia
  • Internal bleeding
• Cardiac arrest
• Cardiac arrhythmia
• Cardiac tamponade
• Hypertensive emergency
• Myocardial infarction (heart attack)
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage
• Subdural hematoma, acute
• Ventricular fibrillation

[edit] Metabolic

• Addisonian crisis of sudden decrease in endogenous steroids
• Advanced dehydration
• Diabetic coma
  • Diabetic ketoacidosis
  • Hypoglycemic coma
• Lactic acidosis
• Thyroid storm
• Acute renal failure
• Electrolyte disturbance, severe (along with dehydration, possible with severe diarrhea or vomiting, chronic laxative abuse, and severe burns)
• Malnutrition and starvation (as in extreme anorexia, and bulimia, as well as other causes)
• Hepatic encephalopathy

[edit] Neurological

• Cerebrovascular accident (stroke)
• Convulsion or seizure
• Syncope (fainting)
• Meningitis

[edit] Ophthalmological

• Acute angle-closure glaucoma
• Orbital perforation/penetration
• Retinal detachment

[edit] Psychiatric

• Suicide Ideation
• Psychotic Episode

[edit] Respiratory

• Agonal breathing
• Acute asthma
• Asphyxia
  • Angioedema
  • Choking
  • Drowning
  • Smoke inhalation
• Epiglottitis or severe croup
• Pneumothorax
• Pulmonary embolism
• Respiratory failure

[edit] Shock

• Cardiogenic shock
• Hypovolemic shock or hemorrhagic shock
• Anaphylaxis
• Septic shock
• Neurogenic shock
• Obstructive shock, e.g. massive pulmonary embolism

[edit] Urological, andrological, gynecologic, and obstetric

• Eclampsia
  • Pre-eclampsia
  • HELLP syndrome
• Ectopic pregnancy
• Gynecologic hemorrhage
• Obstetrical hemorrhage
• Paraphimosis
• Priapism
• Sexual assault (rape)
• Testicular torsion
• Urinary retention

[edit] References

1. ^ Malaria at MedlinePlus NIH publication, Accessed 7 Nov 2006