(Click the link to comment and to vote – voting not working through email, sorry!)
A 16 year old female involved in a motor vehicle accident is brought into your trauma bay; she is obviously gravid and states that she is 8 months pregnant.
(Click the link to comment and to vote – voting not working through email, sorry!)
A 16 year old female involved in a motor vehicle accident is brought into your trauma bay; she is obviously gravid and states that she is 8 months pregnant.
Loading ...© 2024 PEM Source — Powered by WordPress
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑
November 24, 2021 at 1:19 am
E) If she requires a chest tube, it should be placed 1-2 interspaces higher than usual
Motor vehicle accidents are the most common type of pregnancy-related trauma and the most common cause of trauma-related fetal death. Improper lapbelt positioning is a major factor – the belt should go under the gravid abdomen across the pelvis, not over the abdomen. Patients should be evaluated in a left lateral position, with a bump under their right side to displace the uterus so it doesn’t compress the IVC. Peritoneal stretching results in decreased sensitivity, so abdominal tenderness may be a less reliable exam finding. Blood pressure is lower during pregnancy but returns to normal in the 3rd trimester; since hypotension greatly raises fetal mortality, low BP should be addressed immediately and not attributed to pregnancy. Preterm labor is a common serious complication in pregnant trauma patients. Other serious, rarer complications include placental abruption, uterine rupture, and amniotic fluid embolus. All Rh negative pregnant trauma patients should receive RhoGham; maternal Rh sensitization can occur with as little as 0.01mL of feto-maternal hemorrhage.