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Practice Matters: Red Flags In Evaluating Adult Abdominal Pain, Mary Branstetter Dnp, Dawn Garrett-Wright Phd

International Journal of Faith Community Nursing

Abstract

Acute abdominal pain is the leading cause of presentation to an emergency department in the United States. Over 5.6 million annual visits have been reported for abdominal pain and represent 18% of emergency department visits and 1.5% of all office-based visits. Acute abdominal pain can be described as visceral, somatic, or neuropathic in origin. Faith community nurses have tools, such as OLDCARTS, to take a good history in order to make sound decisions regarding patient referral to a higher level of care. Identifying red flags for abdominal emergencies and awareness of signs and symptoms of colon cancer allow faith …