Plain abdominal radiographs in acute medical emergencies: an abused investigation?

• acute medical emergencies
• abdominal radiographs

I read the article on plain abdominal radiographs in acute medical emergencies with interest,¹ and I agree in many respects about the unnecessary use of abdominal radiographs, especially if the diagnosis is clear. I would, however, like to address a few points with regards to the article.

• I note that the abdominal radiographs were performed on patients admitted under a general medical on-call with acute medical emergencies. It is unusual, in my experience, for patients with medical disorders to have abdominal radiography unless an acute abdomen is suspected. In this situation, the patient would have a surgical abdomen. In …