Taking a History in Neurocritically Ill Patients.
A clinical history leads to an examination, tests and a diagnosis. This time-honored sequence in medicine remains valid in critical illness, but in the heat of the moment there is a quickly appearing inevitable sketchiness. Intensivists should never be too unquestioning, too comfortable with incomplete information, or too unwilling to start over if information is muddled or contradictory. No scale in neurology looks at history. There is no tool or requirement to provide a standard system of communication. I review the essentials of history taking in a neurocritically ill patient. Examples of the value of a good medical history are shown but also the familiar biases when asking questions. There are obstacles, errors of commission and omission, and the importance of recognition of a clinical trajectory.
['Wijdicks|Eelco F M|EFM|']
D015982:Bias D002983:Clinical Competence D003422:Critical Care D016638:Critical Illness D018450:Disease Progression D006801:Humans D008487:Medical History Taking D059065:Medication Reconciliation D009422:Nervous System Diseases
History Diagnosis Bias Clinical course Intensive care unit