Quick Reference Guide to Radiological Imaging for Acute Abdominal Pain

This iBook originally began as a project for the radiology selective at the NYU school of medicine. The goal was to focus on how to quickly triage a patient’s complaint of acute abdominal pain and select the appropriate imaging modality. While numerous resources exist to address this problem, they are spread out over multiple locations and not always immediately accessible to the on-the-go medical student or first year intern. With the ever increasing reliance on mobile technologies in the hospital it became a straightforward idea to organize and compile the current imaging recommendations from the American College of Radiology into one resource that could be easily accessed from a phone or tablet. This iBook is primarily for those early in their medical education including clinical medical students and interns; especially those in the emergency medicine or surgical fields. It presents several common causes of acute abdominal pain including the typical signs and symptoms, laboratory findings, and imaging recommendations. Where appropriate alternative imaging options are also provided based on certain circumstances. We hope that those who use this iBook find it useful and a quick and reliable resource for selecting the appropriate imaging for acute abdominal pain.


Produced by the Institute for Innovations in Medical Education.