Abdominal Trauma

Question 1

Indications for Laparotomy

Answer 1

Question 2

Abdominal Injuries That Need Expanded Evaluation

Answer 2

Question 3

The greatest benefit of FAST is

Answer 3

the rapid identification of free intraperitoneal fluid in the hypotensive patient with blunt abdominal trauma

Question 4

The main disadvantage of US compared to CT is _______________

Other potential disadvantages of the FAST examination are

Answer 4

the inability to identify the exact source of free intraperitoneal fluid

the operator-dependent nature of the examination,

the difficulty in interpreting the images in patients who are obese or have subcutaneous air or excessive bowel gas,

and the difficulty in distinguishing intraperitoneal hemorrhage from ascites.

Also, the FAST examination cannot evaluate the retroperitoneum as well as CT.