In multi-system trauma, scene time should be limited to how long?
10 minutes - “Platinum 10”
a crackling sound or feeling when palpating tissue that has subcutaneous emphysema (air trapped in subcutaneous tissue)
subcutaneous crepitation
air collecting in the space between the lung tissue and the chest wall; it compresses the lung tissue and interferes with respiration
pneumothorax
a life-threatening emergency where the pressure from the air inside the chest cavity squeezes the lung tissue under pressure until the heart is also squeezed and can no longer pump blood. Will lead to hypotension
tension pneumothorax
a physiological scoring system that is used to assess major head trauma without multi-system injury or major physiological changes; also assesses the severity of a trauma patient’s injuries. Takes into account GCS, SBP and RR. The highest score is 12, the lowest is 0.
Revised Trauma Score
Traits of a critically injured patient:
- Dangerous (high-energy) MOI
- Decreased level of consciousness
- Any threats to airway, breathing or circulation
a large, localized collection of blood outside the blood vessels; occurs when blood leaks from a ruptured blood vessel, typically due to trauma or injury; occurs in a closed wound
hematoma
air bubbles in the arterial blood vessels
arterial air embolism
an impact on the body by objects that cause injury without penetrating soft tissues or internal organs and cavities
blunt trauma
a phenomenon in which speed causes a bullet to generate pressure waves, which cause damage distant from the bullet’s path
cavitation
a brain injury that occurs when force is applied to the head and energy transmission through brain tissue causes injury on the opposite side of original impact
coup-contrecoup brain injury
the slowing of an object
deceleration
resistance that slows a projectile, such as air
drag
an evaluation tool used to determine level of consciousness, which evaluates and assigns point values (scores) for eye opening, verbal response, and motor response, which are then totaled; effective in helping predict patient outcomes
Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)
awareness that unseen life-threatening injuries may exist when determining the mechanism of injury
index of suspicion
the energy of a moving object
kinetic energy
the forces, or energy transmission, applied to the body that cause injury
mechanism of injury
emergencies that require EMS attention because of illnesses or conditions not caused by an outside force
medical emergencies
trauma that affects more than one body system
multi-system trauma
injury caused by objects, such as knives and bullets that pierce the surface of the body and damage internal tissues and organs
penetrating trauma
the product of mass, gravity and height, which is converted into kinetic energy and results in injury, such as from a fall
potential energy
any object propelled by force, such as a bullet by a weapon
projectile
pulmonary trauma resulting from short-range exposure to the detonation of explosives
pulmonary blast injuries
the path a projectile takes once it is propelled
trajectory
