Emergency management of patients with bleeding disorders: practical points for the emergency physician

Emergency department (ED) physicians are often the first point of contact for patients who present with bleeding symptoms. Work up and management of bleeding in the emergency room can be a daunting task as it requires: (1) accurate diagnosis of the bleeding cause, of which there is long list of common and rare etiologies (2); appropriate investigations and interpretation of the results; and (3) timely management of bleeding symptoms to prevent limb- or life-threatening complications. Crucial to the management of a bleeding patient is a thorough yet focused history exploring bleeding symptoms, medications/drugs (anticoagulants, antiplatelets), mechanism of trauma/injury, personal and family history of diagnosed bleeding disorders or bleeding symptoms and recognizing acuity and severity of bleeding that requires immediate intervention.
Source: Transfusion and Apheresis Science - Category: Hematology Authors: Source Type: research