LAUSR

Several years ago, I was working in a small community ED. A young man who had been stabbed in the right chest was dropped off in the ambulance bay. He was pale with a rapid and weak pulse. He then went unresponsive. I quickly performed a needle thoracostomy followed by a 32F chest drain evacuating approximately 400 mL of blood. There was an immediate improvement in his perfusion and overall condition. He was eventually transferred to the regional trauma centre and had an uneventful hospital stay. Later that same evening, a large (150 kg) middle aged man was brought in by ambulance …