Investigations are a component of Assessment. They comprise 3 main divisions;
- Bedside
- Laboratory
- Imaging
Each of these can be applied to most diseases or presentations. Care must be taken to only consider investigations which will alter management, DDx, complications or prognosis.
For example: a 35 year old patient comes in with rapid breathing and nausea
DDx is obviously very broad, but the conditions not to miss are MI, DKA, PE, Pneumonia. There are many other potential DDx but excluding life threats is the top priority. Therefore relevant investigations are:
Bedside: ECG, BSL/VBG
Laboratory: FBC, Troponin
Imaging: CXR
If you’ve got another system, or you reckon there are better ways to do it, leave a comment below!