Back Pain
It’s not easy to know if you should visit the ER when you are not feeling well. Whenever an illness or injury occurs, you need to decide how serious it is and how soon to get medical care. For example, what if you hurt your wrist, and your physician’s office is not open? Or you might wake up in the middle of the night with severe back pain?
Fever
⋅Sudden weakness or numbness
⋅Isolated acute pain
⋅Vision loss, slurred or inability to speak, confusion
⋅Loss of control over bladder or bowel movement
Broken Bones
Without a proper diagnosis including imaging, it can be difficult to know if a bone is dislocated, broken, or just a bad sprain. The following symptoms along with pain may indicate the bone is broken and you require medical care:
⋅Bruising around the impacted area
⋅Bone bulge or deformity through the skin
⋅Swelling or any irregular sound with movement
Chest Pains
CALL 911 right away if you have crushing or squeezing chest pain(s) and feel any of the following symptoms:
⋅Sweating
⋅Nausea or vomiting
⋅Signs of shock
⋅Shortness of breath
⋅Lightheadedness
⋅Fast or irregular heart rate
⋅Pain that shoots from the chest to arms, neck or jaw
Signs of a cardiac attack in women could display different types of symptoms, and may be associated with the following signs:
⋅Shortness of breath
⋅Nausea or vomiting
⋅Dizziness or lightheadedness
⋅Unusual exhaustion
⋅Discomfort in the abdomen or core
⋅Discomfort in the shoulder, upper back or neck areas
Concussion
Any injury to the head should be taken seriously and treated with extreme priority. A Direct impact to any part of the head which is associated with any of the following symptoms requires immediate emergency treatment:
Loss of brief or extended consciousness
⋅Seizure
⋅Amnesia, or memory loss pertaining to the act.
⋅Slurred speech
⋅Disorientation or confusion
⋅Worsening severe headache
⋅Vomiting
Flu
The influenza virus is common and does not normally require an ER visit. However, for the high-risk populations listed below, the Flu can be very serious.
⋅Infants/toddlers
⋅People over the age of 60
⋅Pregnant women
⋅Individuals with certain illnesses or conditions, such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
⋅Those with compromised or weakened immune systems
Life-threatening signs accompanied with the flu require immediate medical attention:
⋅Trouble breathing
⋅Uncontrollable vomiting leading dehydration
⋅Pneumonia complications
Side or Abdomen
Pain in these regions is typically temporary. However, severe side pain can be an indication of something grave.
Severe pain, specifically in the lower right stomach, back or sides or if the pain is associated with any of the following symptoms call for immediate medical treatment:
⋅Fever