hmm

[hogdweeb]

While ago I was listening to the scanner. "dispatch to (service name) respond to 123 xyz street for a (I believe it was) mid aged female party expierencing severe abd. pain, difficulty breathing and chest pain. Pastient does have a known cardiac history".

Got thinking about it, chest pain / difficulty breathing could be respiratory or cardiac in origin, or neither, but what the abd. pain? Coincidence? S/S of med. problem?

thoughts? I'm only a basic, but it was a funky dispatch to hear...never head anything like it before...

 

[NomadicMedic]

It could be one of any of a dozen causes. Could the abdominal pain be cardiac related? Sure. Might the chest pain be related to the abdominal pain? Sure. Maybe the difficulty breathing is because her belly hurt so much? Sure.

The only way to know is to get there and do some diagnostics and start to figure out what you got. From that simple dispatch, a 50+ year old female with abdominal pain, chest pain and shortness of breath along with a known cardiac history would probably raise my index of suspicion a bit.

But a 12 lead, good physical exam and an in-depth Q and A would be the starting point. I never go off what the dispatcher tells me, unless it's a simple, cut and dry issue that I can see when I walk in. Like an obvious fracture. Otherwise, every call is like a new case on CSI.

 

[Mariemt]

Could be appendix, then a panic attack etc.

Could be a heart problem, causing belly pain. Nausea goes with heart issues often.
It could be anything, the links of abdominal pain in relation to cardiac issues are not uncommon. You need to go in there and check it out.

Heck a couple good strong margaritas can give me those symptoms

 

[Wheel]

Could be any number of things, from reflux to anxiety to "the big one." I try not to let dispatch complaint guide my assessment/treatment in cases like this.

 

[DrParasite]

what's the cardiac hx? does she really have breathing difficuty, or does it just hurt when she breathes? maybe the person just said they have chest pain too because the more yesses they say the faster the ambulance arrives?

most abdominal pains are non-life threatening. I am betting she was a simple M+T to the ER, with no cardiac or resp issues.