Arteriography performed in the emergency center.

Area of Science:

• Vascular Surgery
• Diagnostic Imaging
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Peripheral arterial injuries require accurate and timely diagnosis.
• Traditional arteriography can be time-consuming and resource-intensive.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of a single hand injection arteriography in the emergency center for diagnosing peripheral arterial injuries.
• To determine the utility of this rapid arteriography in specific patient populations.

Main Methods:

• A single hand injection arteriography technique performed in the emergency center.
• Minimal equipment and no specialized training required for radiologic technicians.

Main Results:

• Emergency center arteriography is a sensitive and accurate diagnostic tool.
• Identified a 13% rate of arterial injury in asymptomatic patients with normal distal pulses.
• The procedure is beneficial for ruling out injury in massively injured patients and those with proximity injuries.

Conclusions:

• Emergency center arteriography is a simple, cost-effective, and time-saving diagnostic maneuver.
• This rapid arteriography is particularly useful for excluding arterial injury in patients with no overt signs but proximity to trauma.
• A negative arteriogram provides assurance of the absence of arterial injury, guiding patient management.