Case Reports

Urgent Message: While children presenting to urgent care centers usually have minor illnesses, attentiveness to vital signs and behavior is crucial to avoid missing rare but serious diagnoses. Diabetic ketoacidosis is the most common initial presentation of type 1 diabetes mellitus in young children. Capillary blood glucose measurement is a universally available screening tool that should be used liberally in ill-appearing children with alterations in level of consciousness. Ramiro Rodriguez, MD; Samantha Reis, MSN, FNP-BC, …
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Urgent Message: Chronic cough has a distinct differential diagnosis in different age groups. A cough lasting longer than 4 weeks in children and adolescents should prompt revision of the differential diagnosis to reduce delays in diagnosing serious etiologies. Daniel Moscato, MS, PA-C; Joshua W. Russell, MD Citation: Moscato D, Russell JW. Uncovering the Unexpected: A Case of Chronic Cough in an Adolescent with an Unusual Etiology. J Urgent Care Med. 2025; 19(4)23-26. Key words: Pediatrics, …
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Urgent Message: Abdominal pseudohernia is a rare diagnosis with variable presentation. Urgent care clinicians who are familiar with the condition and its variable presentations can reduce the risk of diagnostic errors and unnecessary or inappropriate diagnostic testing. Berkeley E Prewett, BSA; Stephen V Green, MD; Andrew L Juergens II, MD; Taylor K Ratcliff, MD Citation: Prewett BE, Green SV, Juergens AL, Ratcliff TK. Abdominal Pseudohernia and Urinary Retention Due to Spinal Nerve Root Compression From …
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Urgent Message: Urethral obstruction can occur due to impacted urinary calculi. This etiology should be considered in patients with known or suspected history of kidney stones who present with urinary retention. Point-of-care ultrasound can be used to evaluate for and confirm this diagnosis in male patients, in whom the phenomenon is most likely. Nicholas Maenza, DO; Jeffrey Darko, MD Citation: Maenza N, Darko J. Urinary Retention Caused by a Urethral Stone Diagnosed with Point-of-Care Ultrasound: …
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Urgent Message: Incorporating questions regarding the use of intravenous drugs may help ensure the diagnosis of puffy hand syndrome is included in the differential for patients presenting with bilateral hand swelling. Citation: Majeed I, VanDyke K. Puffy Hand Syndrome: A Case Report. J Urgent Care Med. 2024; 19 (2): 25-27 Abstract Introduction: Bilateral hand swelling is a common presentation in a variety of conditions, particularly rheumatological disorders. Urgent care (UC) providers can avoid unnecessary testing …
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