Orthopedics Cases From THE PITT

7 cases 6 episodes · S01E01 – S02E14

All emergency department cases involving Orthopedics from The Pitt, documented with medically accurate clinical timelines, diagnostic workups, and expert clinical pearls.

Patient arrived via EMS after a head-on MVC into a telephone pole.

S02E14 Moderate

53 · Male

Lyman Paine

Involved in a single-vehicle head-on collision into a telephone pole.

53-year-old male presents post single motor vehicle collision. He drove head-on into a telephone pole. Airbags deployed. He was unconscious at the scene but woke up during transport. There is no scent of alcohol; EMS suspects syncope, seizure, or falling asleep at the wheel. Initially stable upon ED arrival, he shortly develops progressive bilateral upper extremity paresthesia and impending respiratory failure.

TraumaNeurosurgery +2 more

78-year-old female presenting with left hip pain and bruising after a low-speed motor vehicle vs. pedestrian accident.

S02E12 Complex

78 · Female

Frida Cohen

Left hip pain and bruising after a low-speed motor vehicle vs. pedestrian accident (ground-level fall).

78-year-old female presents to the ED after her husband's car backed into her at a very low speed, causing a ground-level fall. She denies head trauma, chest pain, or shortness of breath. She complains of left hip pain and has visible bruising. Past medical history is significant for hypertension, hypothyroidism, and atrial fibrillation. She is currently anticoagulated on Eliquis (apixaban).

GeriatricsTrauma +2 more

Patient arriving in the trauma bay in a cervical collar with EKG leads placed. A distinct depression and erythema are visible over the right sternoclavicular joint.

S01E06 Moderate

18 · Male

Miles Hernandez

Right chest pain, left leg pain, and shortness of breath following a motor vehicle collision (ambulance into a tree).

18-year-old male presents to the ED under police escort after stealing an ambulance and crashing it into a tree. The patient was the driver. He presents with severe shortness of breath, stridor, right chest pain, and left leg deformity. His passenger, Zac, suffered only minor lacerations.

TraumaOrthopedics +1 more

Ginger Kitajima resting in an ED bed with bandages on her left, accompanied by her daughter and sole caregiver Rita.

S01E05 Moderate

Elderly · Female

Ginger Kitajima

Ground-level fall with left arm pain and abrasions.

Ginger Kitajima is an elderly female with a history of schizophrenia (managed with Risperidone). She requires 24/7 assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs), provided solely by her daughter, Rita. Patient presents to the ED after a ground-level fall into a rose bush at home. She denies hitting her head or experiencing syncope. Complains of isolated left shoulder/arm pain.

GeriatricsOrthopedics +2 more

Patient presenting to the trauma bay with a severe high-voltage electrical burn to the left forearm.

S01E02 Brief

Adult · Male

Unknown

High-voltage electrocution and ventricular fibrillation

Adult male brought in by flight crew after sustaining a high-voltage electrical injury to his left forearm. He was found at an abandoned factory with bolt cutters at his side, suggesting he cut into a live wire while attempting to steal copper. Pre-hospital course was complicated by a witnessed ventricular fibrillation (V-fib) arrest requiring at least one defibrillation shock prior to ED arrival.

TraumaEnvironmental +3 more

Dennis Whitaker experiencing a finger injury during a code blue.

S01E01 Brief

25 · Male

Dennis Whitaker

Acute finger pain and throbbing

Dennis Whitaker, a 4th-year medical student (MS4) on his first day in the Emergency Department, was participating in the resuscitation of an 89-year-old female patient in cardiac arrest. While assisting the team in transferring the patient from the gurney to the ED bed, he sustained a pinch or crush injury to his finger, which subsequently developed into a painful subungual hematoma.

Occupational InjuryOrthopedics +2 more

Patient with Right Lower Leg Degloving Injury

S01E01 Complex

Adult · Female

Minu Agrawal

Extremity trauma and severe pain after falling onto subway tracks.

Patient fell from a subway 'T' platform and her foot was caught between the platform and an incoming train, resulting in a severe degloving injury and open fracture dislocation of the right lower leg and ankle. The mechanism of the fall is initially unknown; bystanders report she may have fainted, tripped, or been pushed. She was rescued by a Good Samaritan who sustained a head injury in the process. Patient presents with extreme pain refractory to initial opiate administration and an inability to provide history due to a profound language barrier.

TraumaOrthopedics +2 more