As a medical student at the University of Vermont in the late 1960s interested in emergency room care (this was considered peculiar at the time), I found myself disappointed that my medical education (excellent in every other way) was lacking when it came to the treatment of simple minor emergencies. I had this in mind when, in 1975, as the medical director of the emergency service at George Washington University Medical Center (and the first residency-trained emergency physician in the Washington, DC, area), I was given the opportunity to present a 1-hour lecture to their medical students on emergency medical care—“Common Simple Emergencies.” (At that time, 1 hour was considered very generous for covering all of emergency medicine.)

 

I eventually expanded this slide show and lecture to a 6-hour series, which I presented regularly at the Georgetown University Medical Center Emergency Department. Even though there were still few published data on most of the topics covered in the lecture series, in 1985, with the help of emergency medicine attending physician Dr. Thomas Stair, I turned “Common Simple Emergencies” into a 300-page book. For the most part, the information contained within this publication was based on common practice and personal experience.

 

Fifteen years later, with more published data available, the book was again published under the present title and was expanded to 500 pages. The general format (“What To Do/What Not To Do”) was maintained. Even with the greater volume of information, the book remained a practical guide.

 

Today, in stark contrast to when the original edition was published in 1985, there is a plethora of scientific data on most of the subjects covered in Minor Emergencies. The book has now grown to over 800 pages. In the face of the sometimes overwhelming volume of data now available, I have endeavored to continue to present these topics on minor emergencies in a manner that will still allow this larger text to be a useful and practical guide.

 

I have maintained the simple basic format used in the previous edition and have continued to use bold font to bring the reader’s eye to the key information in each chapter. I have added red font to help identify different topics within the text. The discussions are now highlighted and compressed using small font and double columns. These changes have allowed me to make the book more complete and comprehensive, yet still allow it to remain useful at a glance.

 

The clinical material has all been updated, new topics have been added, and I have used evidence-based data whenever available. Many more photographs and drawings have been added (in color) to benefit the reader. In addition, I have personally reviewed the index to help ensure its usefulness and have attempted to include many identifying symptoms in the index to help users find the topic they are searching for.

 

I have done all of this so that you as a clinician can have more fun with your patients. When emergencies are minor, it gives you an opportunity to lighten up and enjoy the art of healing. Patients appreciate a confident clinician with a good sense of humor who can stop the pain and/or the worry, fix the problem in a compassionate way, and make them laugh through the process. This book can provide you with the information that you need to perform competently and to relax when presented with the minor emergencies that patients will always need your help with. (You will have to supply the humor.) You will be greatly rewarded for your treatment by seeing their smiling faces and hearing their expressions of gratitude after happily making them well.

 

 

To incorporate an academic element to the latest edition of Minor Emergencies, I have returned to my alma mater, the University of Vermont, thereby bringing the book full circle to its earliest origins. I asked Emergency Department Medical Director Stephen Leffler MD, FACEP whether he and the rest of the emergency department medical staff would be interested in updating the clinical material in Minor Emergencies and bringing the book into the digital age with an electronic publication that would include video displays.

 

Steve, along with his department staff, accepted the challenge enthusiastically.

 

With their involvement, this latest edition of Minor Emergencies should prove to be more accurate and convenient for the user. There will be periodic updates of the electronic version, and this will maintain a continuous renewal of clinical information.

 

The book title of this third edition has been shortened with the elimination of the subtitle “Splinters to Fractures.” This subtitle was thought to be more misleading than informative, and the new abbreviated title better reflects the book’s true essence.

 

It is my hope that this new edition will continue to provide support for all clinicians out there who are caring for the public’s minor emergencies on a daily basis.

 

 

We have no relationships with or financial interests in any commercial companies that pertain to any of the products mentioned in this publication.

 

Any comments, suggestions, and/or questions can be directed to Drs. Buttaravoli and Leffler at e-med@juno.com and Stephen.Leffler@vtmednet.org under the subject heading Minor Emergencies.

 

 

After having won first place in the surgical division of the British Medical Association book awards, we believe there is no reason to change the basic formula for success that we created in the third edition. Over time, though, it does become necessary to inform our readers of the new developments in the field of minor emergencies.

 

To bring the fourth edition up to date, Dr. Leffler and I have brought Dr. Ramsey Herrington on board as an additional lead author. Dr. Herrington is the chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Vermont Medical Center, where he has been instrumental in establishing a new Emergency Medicine Residency Program.

 

The emergency physician members of this new program have been key participants in contributing to the update of the fourth edition’s new and established chapters. The basic format has stayed the same, and the book should remain a practical guide for both seasoned practitioners and those health care workers who are just starting their careers in emergency medicine, urgent care, and/or family practice.

 

This will be the last time that I will be actively involved with the publication of Minor Emergencies, and I can only hope that I have helped to fill in a small niche that was initially missing from our medical education. I thank everyone who has seen the value in treating minor emergencies with the respect that they deserve.