Abstract

MOREIRA, Carolina Martins; VOUGA, Luís Afonso  and  ANDRADE, Maria João. Autonomic dysreflexia: a challenging diagnosis. Rev Port Med Geral Fam [online]. 2020, vol.36, n.3, pp.311-315. ISSN 2182-5173.  https://doi.org/10.32385/rpmgf.v36i3.12539.

Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) is a frequent complication of spinal cord injury (SCI) poten-tially life-threatening. Its sudden and exuberant presentation with arterial hypertension, bradycardia, atrial fibrillation, headache, mydriasis, and profuse sweating leads these patients to the nearest emergency department (ED) where health professionals have limited experience with this condition. This clinical case portrays a patient with chronic SCI admitted to the ED with an AD, which leads to hospital admission and subjection to an exhaustive and unnecessary battery of exams due to the lack of diagnosis and guidance. With the increase in prevalence and average life expectancy of this population, it is paramount that doctors working in emergency departments or primary health care can recognize this potentially fatal clinical syndrome.

Keywords : Spinal cord injuries; Autonomic dysreflexia.

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