The ECG in Environmental Urgencies and Emergencies

Environmental emergencies encompass a broad range of medical conditions. Most people equate environmental emergencies with the wilderness; however, a large majority of these conditions occur in the chronically ill, in or near their homes. Clinicians can use the electrocardiogram (ECG) to help diagno...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inElectrocardiogram in Clinical Medicine pp. 315 - 325
Main Authors Lounsbury, Heather T, Althoff, Seth O
Format Book Chapter
LanguageEnglish
Published Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 05.08.2020
Subjects
ECG findings
heat stroke
hypothermia
lighting strikes
underwater submersion
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Summary:Environmental emergencies encompass a broad range of medical conditions. Most people equate environmental emergencies with the wilderness; however, a large majority of these conditions occur in the chronically ill, in or near their homes. Clinicians can use the electrocardiogram (ECG) to help diagnose and manage some environmental emergencies. This chapter covers environmental emergencies that have unique or specific ECG findings, as well as treatment of the environmental emergencies. The environmental emergencies include hypothermia, lighting strikes, underwater submersion, and heat stroke. Hypothermia has profound and various effects on the ECG. The ECG can be a crucial piece of information for the clinician in patients who have knowingly experienced an environmental emergency or even in undifferentiated patients at risk for an environmental exposure.
ISBN:1118754557
9781118754559
DOI:10.1002/9781118754511.ch31