The Big Five-Lifesaving Procedures in the Trauma Bay
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Published on: March 29, 2019
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Grady Memorial Hospital, 1750 Gambrell Drive Northeast, Hospital Tower, Suite T5L41, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Anesthesiology, Emory University School of Medicine, Emory Critical Care Center, Emory University, 1750 Gambrell Drive Northeast, Hospital Tower, Suite T5L41, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
Abstract:
Although resuscitation in trauma requires a multidisciplinary and multifaceted approach, one of the Big Five procedures may need to be performed as lifesaving and improving intervention. Your patient's lives depend on understanding, timing, and techniques of these elusive and difficult-to-master procedures. This article focuses on and reviews these five critical procedures: cricothyroidotomy, burr hole craniotomy, resuscitative thoracotomy, emergent hysterotomy, and lateral canthotomy. Prepare the team, system, and yourself when performing any of these procedures. It is important to be facile with your equipment and familiar with the steps to maximize success.
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