Paucis Verbis: Identifying toxidromes by vital signs

Posted by Michelle Lin, MD on

A middle-age woman presents to the Emergency Department with altered mental status after having ingested a drug. Is it an opioid? Is it an antihistamine?

The key is to pay close attention to the vital signs. They are often the clue to the mystery. I found this great table from EM Clinics of North America by Dr. Timothy Erickson from 2007. I can’t imagine how long it took for him to create all these mnemonics. I’ll never remember these mnemonics, but they’re fun to read nonetheless.

PV Card: Toxidromes by Vital Signs


Go to ALiEM (PV) Cards for more resources.

Author information

ALiEM Founder and CEO
Professor and Digital Innovation Lab Director
Department of Emergency Medicine
University of California, San Francisco

The post Paucis Verbis: Identifying toxidromes by vital signs appeared first on ALiEM.


Go to full site