Adding Insult to Injury: Asymptomatic Fat Embolism Identified on Computed Tomography
Fat embolism (FE) is a classically taught complication of long bone fractures, with the potential to cause high morbidity and mortality; however, it is rarely apparent on emergency department (ED) presentation or imaging. If recognized by the ED clinician, development of symptoms of FE may be avoide...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
eScholarship Publishing, University of California
2019-05-01
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| Series: | Clinical Practice and Cases in Emergency Medicine |
| Online Access: | https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6t19z4q6 |
| Summary: | Fat embolism (FE) is a classically taught complication of long bone fractures, with the potential to cause high morbidity and mortality; however, it is rarely apparent on emergency department (ED) presentation or imaging. If recognized by the ED clinician, development of symptoms of FE may be avoided by early surgical fixation and potentially by corticosteroid administration. |
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| ISSN: | 2474-252X |