Quick and correct diagnosis of patients with chest pain by means of a computerized system in the emergency department

摘要

Statistical data have shown the clinical, economical and organizational need for a correct and quick evaluation of chest pain. Software has been developed to link information about thoracic pain, electrocardiogram abnormalities, and standardized estimation of coronary risk, to assist in the differentiation between cardiac, gastro-esophageal or skeletomuscular source of chest pain. The software is intended for use in the emergency room, at home and in an ambulance. With a window interface the system user can follow in real time the evolution of the diagnostic procedure. A graph of the changes of the main probabilities during diagnosis can help the user to create his or her own experience interactively, so that the user can reach the correct decision when faced with analogous cases and make correct rational diagnostic hypotheses.