Patients "crapping out"

[Bearrie]

sorry for the dumb ques but what does it mean when your resident says the patient crapped out? i know its ot a precise medical term, but is it just instable vitals or does it have to be something serious like vfib? also, is the term considered rude?

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[Rendar5]

it's not rude and it's not precise, it means the patient took a sudden and serious turn for the worse

 

[Go Ducks]

It would probably be considered pretty tasteless by lay people. Don't say it in front of other patients.
Also I've never heard "crapped out" apply to anyone except for patients who died...

 

[Cinclus]

it's not rude and it's not precise, it means the patient took a sudden and serious turn for the worse

This, I would imagine. Though I've generally only used it to describe broken down appliances, autos, etc.

 

[mmmcdowe]

It would probably be considered pretty tasteless by lay people. Don't say it in front of other patients.
Also I've never heard "crapped out" apply to anyone except for patients who died...

Agreed, it would be offensive to patients and their families. It is not meant to be derogatory, but it just sounds bad like saying organ harvest.

 

[CaptainSSO]

Anytime you're wondering whether a phrase/term or whatever is rude, simply apply it to your own family. Imagine a doctor coming up to you after your mom/brother/girlfriend/husband crashed during a surgery and him saying, "I'm sorry, your mom/brother/cousin/grandmother crapped out."

It probably wouldn't sit well.

 

[Mr hawkings]

Agreed, it would be offensive to patients and their families. It is not meant to be derogatory, but it just sounds bad like saying organ harvest.

By "crapped out", i assume you mean what happens right after pt has been "circling the drain" for a few days.
Yes i've heard that term

 

[lkthlttr]

Reminds me of this episode:
http://www.cbc.ca/whitecoat/blog/2011/10/14/can-we-talk-show/

 

[OveractiveBrain]

sorry for the dumb ques but what does it mean when your resident says the patient crapped out? i know its ot a precise medical term, but is it just instable vitals or does it have to be something serious like vfib? also, is the term considered rude?

AS with most idioms the meaning of the phrase is not distinct. There is not an encylopedia for idioms, its what makes language so magical (and why you can "create" verbs from other words).

Some people use it to mean expired
Some people use it to mean got worse
Some people use it to mean labored respirations tired the patient out

As long as you are conveying a situation that is worsening, or, even better, a situation in which you could forsee the downturn and then it happened, you are using the phrase correctly. It is not to be used in relation to defecating.

 

[Depakote]

I've heard the term "crump" applied for a patient who acutely worsens... this tends to imply a abrupt worsening in vitals/clinical status generally requires aggressive resuscitation +/- an actual code. I would think it is synonymous with "crapped out" and generally implies the patient had an "acute event" that you tend to say they didn't happen overnight.

 

[Kadava Reviva]

I've heard the term "crump" applied for a patient who acutely worsens... this tends to imply a abrupt worsening in vitals/clinical status generally requires aggressive resuscitation +/- an actual code. I would think it is synonymous with "crapped out" and generally implies the patient had an "acute event" that you tend to say they didn't happen overnight.

Ditto. Most often heard in the NICU.

 

[medicsb]

heh, there should probably a "medical slang 101" course where terms such as "walky talky", "trainwreck", "FUBAR", "FUPA", "obscultate", "incidentaloma", "code brown", etc., etc. are explained.

 

[turkeyjerky]

heh, there should probably a "medical slang 101" course where terms such as "walky talky", "trainwreck", "FUBAR", "FUPA", "obscultate", "incidentaloma", "code brown", etc., etc. are explained.

What's FUPA?

(I know one version, but I haven't heard it in a medical context)

 

[Rendar5]

FUBAR isn't a medical term =p

 

[scarshapedstar]

Reminds me of this episode:
http://www.cbc.ca/whitecoat/blog/2011/10/14/can-we-talk-show/

I was expecting a link to this...

 

[Kadava Reviva]

What's FUPA?

(I know one version, but I haven't heard it in a medical context)

It means Fat Uper Pubic/Penis/Pus-y Area where the fat stretches the lower abdomen down until the pubic region cannot be seen while the subject is standing up. It is a more severe form of "gunt" (female) or "gock" (male).

As for FUBAR, it is originally a military expression meaning Fu-ked Up Beyond All Recognition. For example, "the situation was neutralised" uttered by a senior military official or politician usually means something to the effect of: "We sent a pod of 6 navy SEALS. They killed every person of interest within a 2 km radius and their base of operation is now FUBAR." Now, ED physicians use it for things like: "This guy completely lost his lower jaw and most of his tongue, upper teeth and nose in a motocycle accident. His face looks like hamburger; completely FUBAR! You gotta come and see this!"

There is also the "TTT ratio". It is a quick assessment of the patient’s intelligence. It stands for the “Tooth To Tattoo” ratio which is calculated this way:

(Number of teeth + 1) / (number of tattoos +1)

 

[turkeyjerky]

Yeah, I've heard all those. IMHO, FUPA definitely is not a medical term--we used it all the time in college. Tooth to tattoo ratio always cracks me up.