Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30881554›Full record

ReviewThe western journal of emergency medicine2019

Evaluation and Management of Septic Arthritis and its Mimics in the Emergency Department.

Brit Long, Alex Koyfman, Michael Gottlieb

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in The western journal of emergency medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 78 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
78citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
15.5field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

78 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 160 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. [Acute diagnostics-focus on septic arthritis].Orthopadie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2026
    Article
  3. [Management of emergencies in rheumatology].Zeitschrift fur Rheumatologie · 2026
    Review
  4. Septic knee: multimodality approach.Skeletal radiology · 2026
    Review
  5. Article
  6. [Acute diagnostics-focus on septic arthritis].Zeitschrift fur Rheumatologie · 2026
    Review
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. [Management of emergencies in rheumatology].Medizinische Klinik, Intensivmedizin und Notfallmedizin · 2026
    Review
  11. Article
  12. Review
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Trauma case reports · 2025
    Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article

18 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Brit LongBrooke Army Medical Center, Department of Emergency Medicine, Houston, Texas.
Alex KoyfmanThe University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Department of Emergency Medicine, Dallas, Texas.
Michael GottliebRush University Medical Center, Department of Emergency Medicine, Chicago, Illinois.
Rush University Medical Center · USThe University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Septic arthritis is a dangerous medical condition associated with significant morbidity and mortality. However, the differential diagnosis can be broad with conditions that mimic this disease and require different evaluation and treatment. This narrative review presents the emergency medicine evaluation and management, as well as important medical conditions that may mimic this disease. Septic arthritis commonly presents with monoarticular joint pain with erythema, warmth, swelling, and pain on palpation and movement. Fever is present in many patients, though most are low grade. Blood testing and imaging may assist with the diagnosis, but the gold standard is joint aspiration. Management includes intravenous antibiotics and orthopedic surgery consult for operative management vs. serial aspirations. Clinicians should consider mimics, such as abscess, avascular necrosis, cellulitis, crystal-induced arthropathies, Lyme disease, malignancy, osteomyelitis, reactive arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and transient synovitis. While monoarticular arthritis can be due to septic arthritis, other medical and surgical conditions present similarly and require different management. It is essential for the emergency clinician to be aware how to diagnose and treat these mimics.

Indexed as

Anti-Bacterial AgentsArthritis, InfectiousCellulitisDiagnosis, DifferentialEdemaEmergency Service, HospitalEmergency TreatmentErythemaFeverHumansPainAnti-Bacterial Agents

Identifiers

PMID30881554
PMCPMC6404712
OpenAlexW2904450205

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.