EM Basic

Today's episode talks about the diagnosis and management of Acetaminophen overdose.  This is another addition to the EM Basic Project written by Andrea Sarchi.

We encounter acetaminophen overdose frequently in the ED and we need to be on the look out for this because patients can be completely asymptomatic.  If we don't catch it, acetaminophen overdose can result in liver failure requiring transplant or even death unless we interevene early.  This episode will review how to properly workup a patient with a known or suspected acetaminophen overdose, what tests to order, and how to decide who needs antidote therapy.