Title: Primary secondary and tertiary survey | Deranged Physiology
Headings: Primary secondary and tertiary survey
Definitions
Primary survey
Airway
Breathing
Circulation
Disability
Exposure
The value of the digital rectal exam
Adjuncts to the primary survey:
Bloods:
Imaging
Monitoring
Secondary survey
Traumatic diaphragmatic rupture
Tertiary survey
References

Content: Primary secondary and tertiary survey | Deranged Physiology







Primary secondary and tertiary survey
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The strategy of initial assessment and emergent management of severe rauma has come up several times in the past papers. It has not appeared recently, but rather has become split up into sub-specialist injuries (eg. recently the approch to managing life-threatening neck wounds was asked about). ATLS principles generally follow the ABCDE algorithm and the most important component is the resolution of each problem as it is discovered. Previous questions about the main ATLS algorithm have been as follows: Question 8 from the first paper of 2009 (diaphragmatic rupture; value of the PR in trauma)
Question 12 from the second paper of 2005 (primary survey; a repeat)
Question 13 from the second paper of 2005 (secondary survey; a repeat)
Question 2a from the first paper of 2003 (primary survey)
Question 2b from the first paper of 2003 (secondary survey)
Question 1a from the first paper of 2002 (primary survey)
Question 1b from the first paper of 2002 (secondary survey)
It is hard to recommend any specific publication to help write these answers. The best strategy would be to borrow somebody's ATLS manual (ideally, the recent edition).