Contusion: any mechanical injury (usually caused by a blow) resulting in hemorrhage beneath unbroken skin. (Thanks Stedman's medical dictionary) Also, a really fancy name for bruise. Mostly I think they came up with this name, because when someone is admitted to the hospital for a "cardiac contusion," it sounds much more serious than a "cardiac bruise."
So I had a patient who came into the hospital because he was so drunk he couldn't walk to the bathroom. He told me that he drank "socially," but not excessively, but told the ER that he drank 7-8 beers a night. As far as detoxing patients go, this guy was pretty nice. What got me was he watched the history channel on t.v. for over an hour: a documentary of beer-making, and then of breweries themselves. Made my night.
Recently, I have added some new records to my "list." I keep a tally in my head of the wackiest lab values I've seen in people. This week, the following made the list: a sodium of 107 (which is so low that you don't remember your own name, and could seize and die at any minute). And a carbon dioxide in arterial blood at 103 (which is so high that you've been breathing through a straw for months, and again critical.)
So, I think that I would learn a lot from all of these posts of yours if I could just not forget the terms. They are so confusing. It would be easier if we were Italian, because then half of the medical terms are already everyday terms (at least anatomy and such). It's fun to hear them though. It makes me want to sing the bus stop balooga song. :D
ReplyDeleteWow, those are some pretty messed up labs. I don't think I have ever seen them that messed up. Lucky you were there to save them!
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