Acute Medicine: A practical guide to the management of medical emergencies

This is a truly practical guide aimed at the junior physician or casualty officer, which explains what to do when faced with medical emergencies "on take," on the ward or in the A & E department.

Section One describes the detailed management of common general presentations such as acute breathlessness, chest pain, loss of consciousness and cardiac arrest. Section Two covers specific diagnoses such as aortic dissection, thyrotoxic crisis, acute asthma, etc. These chapters are organized by body system, and each chapter is divided into "priorities," "problems" and "further management." Section Three covers the practical details of commonly used procedures such as lumbar puncture, insertion of a chest drain, peritoneal dialysis and central vein cannulation. The appendices consist of useful data such as drug doses.

In this new edition the chapters have been rewritten to make them more accessible and user-friendly. Some information in the previous edition has been reduced to make way for new chapters on: The critically ill patient, Acute diarrhoea, Acute abdominal pain, Electrolyte disorders, Acid-base disorders, Severe anaemia, Bleeding disorders and Management of anti-coagulation. The authors have included evidence for treatments where available and take account of existing guidelines.