I can’t be pregnant…can I?

Author: Mark Winstanley / Editor: Andrew Tabner / Reviewer: Andrew Tabner, Philip Delbridge / Codes: O10 / Published: 18/02/2020 / Reviewed: 07/11/2024

A 27-year-old lady presents to the Emergency Department (ED) with a 4 hour history of lower abdominal pain.

She describes the pain as constant and rates the severity at 4-5 out of 10. She has no bowel or bladder problems and no nausea or vomiting. There is no vaginal bleeding and she has never been pregnant. Her last menstrual period was 6 weeks ago. She is usually fit and well. She is taking the progesterone-only contraceptive pill but otherwise no medications and she has no known allergies. She took a pregnancy test at home this morning which was negative.

Examination reveals a tender lower abdomen without guarding. There is no renal angle tenderness and no palpable mass is present. Bowel sounds are present. Observations are recorded as HR 95 bpm regular, BP 135/89, Temp 36.8

31 Comments

  1. Mehreen Mahmood says:

    Very informative and cleared many of my concepts.

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