Multiple physical insults or injuries occurring simultaneously.

An anatomic severity scale based on the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) and developed specifically to score multiple traumatic injuries. It has been used as a predictor of mortality.

Injuries caused by impact with a blunt object where there is no penetration of the skin.

Accumulations of blood in the PERITONEAL CAVITY due to internal HEMORRHAGE.

General or unspecified injuries to the chest area.

General or unspecified injuries involving organs in the abdominal cavity.

Freedom of equipment from actual or potential hazards.

Fractures of the femur.

A progressive condition usually characterized by combined failure of several organs such as the lungs, liver, kidney, along with some clotting mechanisms, usually postinjury or postoperative.

Damage inflicted on the body as the direct or indirect result of an external force, with or without disruption of structural continuity.

Mechanical devices inserted in the inferior vena cava that prevent the migration of blood clots from deep venous thrombosis of the leg.

Health care provided to a critically ill patient during a medical emergency or crisis.

Specialized hospital facilities which provide diagnostic and therapeutic services for trauma patients.

Hospital units providing continuous surveillance and care to acutely ill patients.

Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.

Observation of a population for a sufficient number of persons over a sufficient number of years to generate incidence or mortality rates subsequent to the selection of the study group.

An autoimmune disorder mainly affecting young adults and characterized by destruction of myelin in the central nervous system. Pathologic findings include multiple sharply demarcated areas of demyelination throughout the white matter of the central nervous system. Clinical manifestations include visual loss, extra-ocular movement disorders, paresthesias, loss of sensation, weakness, dysarthria, spasticity, ataxia, and bladder dysfunction. The usual pattern is one of recurrent attacks followed by partial recovery (see MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, RELAPSING-REMITTING), but acute fulminating and chronic progressive forms (see MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, CHRONIC PROGRESSIVE) also occur. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p903)

Depressive states usually of moderate intensity in contrast with major depression present in neurotic and psychotic disorders.

Mood-stimulating drugs used primarily in the treatment of affective disorders and related conditions. Several MONOAMINE OXIDASE INHIBITORS are useful as antidepressants apparently as a long-term consequence of their modulation of catecholamine levels. The tricyclic compounds useful as antidepressive agents (ANTIDEPRESSIVE AGENTS, TRICYCLIC) also appear to act through brain catecholamine systems. A third group (ANTIDEPRESSIVE AGENTS, SECOND-GENERATION) is a diverse group of drugs including some that act specifically on serotonergic systems.

An affective disorder manifested by either a dysphoric mood or loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities. The mood disturbance is prominent and relatively persistent.

The most common clinical variant of MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, characterized by recurrent acute exacerbations of neurologic dysfunction followed by partial or complete recovery. Common clinical manifestations include loss of visual (see OPTIC NEURITIS), motor, sensory, or bladder function. Acute episodes of demyelination may occur at any site in the central nervous system, and commonly involve the optic nerves, spinal cord, brain stem, and cerebellum. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp903-914)

Compounds that specifically inhibit the reuptake of serotonin in the brain.

A form of multiple sclerosis characterized by a progressive deterioration in neurologic function which is in contrast to the more typical relapsing remitting form. If the clinical course is free of distinct remissions, it is referred to as primary progressive multiple sclerosis. When the progressive decline is punctuated by acute exacerbations, it is referred to as progressive relapsing multiple sclerosis. The term secondary progressive multiple sclerosis is used when relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis evolves into the chronic progressive form. (From Ann Neurol 1994;36 Suppl:S73-S79; Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp903-914)