Winter Tips for Safe Car Travel

Winter is here, and fresh white snow is covering the city. Along with the snow comes slush, ice and dangerous driving conditions. Learn about winter driving safety and how to put together a first aid and survival kit for your car should you ever get stranded or stuck in the worst of winter conditions.

If heavy snows fall quickly and white-out conditions force you to park on the shoulder, it is possible that you may be stranded in your car for several hours. Hitting an ice patch that sends your car off the road can also leave you stranded or with minor cuts and bruises. The Urgency Room of Vadnais Heights, Eagan and Woodbury is here for you when an unexpected car injury happens due to winter weather.

Watch for Signs of Hypothermia

The first concern if you are stranded during a blizzard is hypothermia. This means that the body’s temperature gets too low from exposure to the cold and has reached a core temperature at 95°F or below. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, about 1,500 deaths occur annually from hypothermia.

Make sure you keep a tub of essentials in the car at all times. Below are the recommended items to have on hand during winter. Hopefully, none of these items will be needed; however, it is better to be prepared so you will increase your chance of survival if an accident happens.

Survival and First Aid Items:

• Non-perishable food such as granola bars, fruit snacks, nuts, dried fruits or other easy to open food that won’t spoil.
• Drinkable water – at least one gallon or more to maintain hydration. Eating snow will speed up dehydration.
• Blankets to stay warm while the car is turned off and/or after the gas tank is empty.
• Winter hats, heavy socks, and mittens or gloves will also help you stay warm.
• Chemical hand, foot, or self-warming seat cushions are valuable to have in the car to keep your body’s temperature up.
• Cat litter – keep a large bag of coarse clay-based cat litter to spread under tires to help the tires grip slippery surfaces. It can help get the car out of a rut and back on the road. You can also keep sections of cardboard boxes under tires to help traction.
• Car charging cords for cellphones. Also consider a battery backup charging unit so you can keep the cellphone usable.
• Flares to place in an area that rescue workers are likely to see.
• Bandages, gauze, tape, hydrogen peroxide and antibiotic ointment are important to treat minor injuries.
• Tire chains are helpful to keep in the car.
• Paper, pencils, crayons, board games, cards or books are good to have. You and your passengers might be waiting for a long time. Keep yourselves occupied with fun distractions rather than the scary situation.
• Flashlights and batteries: At some point you will run out of gas if you are stranded long enough, so have a flashlight.
• Snow and ice scrapers: You probably already have these and use them a lot during winter, but just in case you’ve forgotten the essentials, grab a few of these the next time you’re at the store.

This list is long, but keeping all these items in your car can save yours and your passengers’ lives.

Conduct a Winter Maintenance Check of Your Car:

• Check car tires and brakes before the snow falls to make sure that those are ready for ice and snow on the roads.
• Double check the battery, radiator, windshield blades, heater and defroster, belts and hoses to ensure all are in good working order.

Winter Driving Tips:

Always top off the gas tank on a regular basis and keep it at least half full when driving in the winter. The last thing you want is to be caught stranded with hardly any gas in the tank. Remember that wet roads and icy roads look similar, so leave more space in front of you and drive slower. Tap the brakes rather than pressing down hard. Quick braking or direction changes are amplified by slick roads.

How to Handle Being Stranded in Your Car:

In the event you are stranded in your car during heavy snow or a blizzard, take a moment to calm down. Then check on any passengers in the car. If you took off your winter coat to drive, put it back on. Stay warm. Attend to any injuries quickly and calmly. The phrase to remember is “Stay calm.”

Next, place flares and call for help to let emergency services know where you are. Then call family or friends. Severe weather also means an increase in cellphone calls, so service may be interrupted. Be patient and keep trying to reach emergency services or a person that can make calls for you. Make sure the GPS location is enabled on your device in case a loved one uses a “find my phone” function to locate you.

If your car survival kit is in the trunk, make one last, quick trip to retrieve the box. Distribute the blankets, hats and other body-warming items first. The primary concern after ensuring help is on its way is to keep warm and hydrated. Then, relax as best as you can to keep breathing steady and pulse rates down.

Once other passengers are calmed down and cozy, see if the weather conditions have improved. Look at whether you can use the cat litter or cardboard sections to help move the car and get back on the road. If you have doubts that you can get unstuck and moving, stay put. Staying in the car protects you from exposure to the cold. It gives you a place to sleep and keeps you in a larger, easier to find object. Do not risk getting lost walking in white outs—not only will you be hard or impossible to see by other drivers, but you might lose track of where you are yourself.

Monitor your gas usage and do not run the heater continuously because carbon monoxide can build up inside the car and cause illness. Crack a window open just a bit to ventilate the inside air when running the heater. If stranded for a long time, turn the heater on and off to conserve gas.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has addition information and winter car travel tips at http://bit.ly/2cGAM4Z. Call 511 to receive traffic alerts and road conditions. And, as always, The Urgency Room is here to provide tips and medical help when you need it most. Our comprehensive facilities enable our physicians to diagnose and treat any injury you’ve endured during the Minnesota winter. We’re open 365 days per year, including holidays, from 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. When minutes matter, get to The Urgency Room. And as always:

Remember

1. Stay Warm
2. Stay Calm
3. Stay in the Car

Don’t Wait: Treat Your Heart Rhythm Disturbances

When it comes to the health of your heart, there is no time to spare. Don’t get left waiting in never-ending emergency room waiting rooms. Instead, get to your nearest Urgency Room. When you need the highest-quality care in the least amount of time, don’t waste your hours at an emergency room. Get to your nearest UR location in Vadnais Heights, Woodbury or Eagan.

Open 365 days per year from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM, including holidays, easily accessible Urgency Room locations can help you in your time of need. Owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association (EPPA), our state-of-the-art facilities also have the experience to assess, diagnose and treat your heart rhythm disturbances.

What is a Heart Rhythm Disturbance?

Heart rhythm disturbances, also known as abnormal heart rhythms or arrhythmias, means that you don’t have a normal heartbeat rhythm. Your heart isn’t necessarily beating too fast or too slow; it means your heart isn’t beating at a consistent rhythm. Instead of maintaining a constant beat, your heart may feel like it almost skipped or even added a beat.

You might not even notice you have a heart rhythm disturbance, but sometimes you might notice your heart racing or beating slowly. While an irregular heartbeat might not be an emergency, it’s always a good idea to get it checked out by a medical professional. Urgency Room physicians can examine your heart in less time than you’d spend in the emergency room’s waiting room.

Symptoms can be subtle to serious, so take note if you experience a pounding in your chest, dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue or the feeling of a fluttering heartbeat. Although you might not even notice these symptoms and they’ll only make themselves known during a physical exam by a physician.

What Causes Disturbances in Your Heart Rhythm?

You might never see an arrhythmia coming. You might have always had a healthy heart, but there are a number of reasons you could have an irregular heartbeat, including:

• Heart Disease
• Heart Surgery
• Heart Attack
• Electrolyte Imbalance

All of these reasons can weaken or affect your heart muscle, throwing it out of sync with a previously regular heartbeat. Other types of heart rhythm disorders exist and should be assessed by a physician. Some arrhythmias include:

Premature Ventricular Contractions

Also known as “skipped” heartbeats, PVCs are the most common type of heart rhythm disturbance. If you notice these happening often, consider cutting out caffeine, reducing stress and seeing a physician.

Atrial Fibrillation

The irregular contraction of the heart’s upper chambers.

Ventricular Tachycardia

Especially dangerous for people living with heart disease, V-tach is a rapid heart rhythm that starts from the heart’s lower chambers. This hinders the heart’s ability to fill up with enough blood.

Ventricular Fibrillation

An arrhythmia that occurs when the lower chambers of the heart quiver and can’t fill the heart with blood or pump blood to the body.

Arrhythmia Treatments

Treatment for heart rhythm disturbances varies depending on the severity and type of arrhythmia you have. There are a variety of medications, lifestyle changes and even surgeries that can help alleviate or resolve an irregular heartbeat. Some types of changes you can make on your own include restricting your caffeine intake, quitting smoking, limiting your alcohol intake and restricting activities that make your heart rhythm disturbances flare up.

If you have more questions about treatment options for your heartbeat irregularity, come by any UR today.

Premier Care in Minneapolis/ St. Paul for Heart Rhythm Disturbances

Whether you live in Minneapolis or St. Paul, The Urgency Room is here to help you in your time of medical need. Seeking to fill the medical gap between emergency and urgent care, our physicians are dedicated to diagnosing and treating you in way that’ll get you back on your feet sooner than you thought possible. Our patients are consistently impressed with the quality of care they receive from our experienced and caring physicians.

When it comes to the health of your heart, don’t wait. If you notice any type of heart rhythm disturbance, come to an Urgency Room in Eagan, Vadnais Heights or Woodbury as soon as possible. You’ll be seen in a fraction of the time and receive the best care when compared with your average emergency room.

If you have more questions, we’re ready to answer them! Call us today or check out other frequently asked questions. You’ll be seen in a matter of minutes, receive high-quality care, and leave with a peace of mind when it comes to the health of your heart.

Treat High Fever in Adults or Children at the Urgency Room

The Urgency Room- High Fever in Adults/ Children

The Urgency Room is your comprehensive one-stop location for your emergency care needs. Our standalone facilities are expertly outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment to handle the variety of aches, pains, breaks and illnesses that come through our doors every day.

We’re open 365 days a year from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM, even holidays, to be your convenient choice for emergency care. Our three locations are situated in Eagan, Woodbury and Vadnais Heights. You can always keep up to date with your nearest location’s waiting time on our website through your computer, tablet or smartphone.

If you or your child has a high fever, don’t hesitate seeking care. Don’t drudge through hours of waiting at your typical emergency room. Instead, have your high fevers treated at your nearest Urgency Room. With short waiting times, friendly staff and highly experienced physicians, you’ll be back to yourself in no time.

High Fever in Adults

Most adults have a baseline temperature of 98.6 F. When an adult sustains a temperature higher than that for an unusually long period of time, it could be cause for concern and you should consider seeking emergency care at The Urgency Room.

Fevers are a complex illness and can stem from many different types of illnesses or infections. The physicians at The Urgency Room, however, can accurately assess and diagnose the source of your high fever. Fevers occur when the hypothalamus, your body’s “thermostat,” increases your body’s temperature because of fever-producing substances called pyrogens.

When pyrogens are released into your blood, you could wind up with a dangerously high fever. Pyrogens could come from: bacteria, drugs, toxins, viruses and fungi. The severity of a fever and its detrimental results increase the higher your temperature and the longer it persists—which is why getting a high fever treated sooner is always your best option.

Low fever: 100 F – 101 F

Intermediate fever: 102 F

High fever: 103 F – 104 F

Once a fever goes beyond the high level, an adult enters dangerous fever levels (104 F – 107 F). Once a fever reaches the dangerous level, also known as hyperpyrexia, it is a medical emergency and you should seek medical care immediately.

It is difficult to pinpoint the source of a fever as there are an incredible number diseases and illnesses that have high temperatures as a side effect or symptom. And while fevers most frequently accompany a viral illness, our physicians will try and get down to the exact source.

High Fever in Children

The severity and damage a fever can cause vary by the age of the child. Younger children and infants should be seen by a physician sooner than an adult or teenager would with a similar temperature.

Here are temperature ranges of fever and what to do depending on how old your child with a high fever is:

If your child’s fever matches any of those criteria above, it’s time to seek medical care. As you can see, the rule of thumb for when to seek medical attention for children with a high fever varies dramatically compared with when an adult should seek care for a high fever.

In addition to high or rising temperatures that last longer than 24 hours, a child with a high fever could have other obvious symptoms. Be on the lookout for severe diarrhea, dehydration, repeated vomiting, seizures or rash. Your child is especially susceptible to serious infections if they have any type of immune disorder or haven’t received immunizations.

When minutes matter, especially if your child has a high fever, get to your nearest Urgency Room—we have shorter wait times and state-of-the-art equipment to treat your illness.        

When is it Time to Seek Urgent Care?

As listed above, the duration one with a high fever should wait to seek medical treatment varies depending on age. An infant should be seen right away even if it has temperatures constituting a low fever in adults. Similarly, an adult can wait until the fever persists for a day or two while a child, depending on its age, should be seen as soon as they’ve had a fever of any temperature for longer than 24 hours.

You may try fever-reducing medicines (ones containing acetaminophen) before seeking urgent care, however, call a physician before having a child take a child-formula of this type of medicine. Don’t give your child aspirin.

How Can The Urgency Room Treat High Fevers in Adults and Children?

The Urgency Room in Eagan, Vadnais Heights or Woodbury are well-equipped to take care of you or your child when experiencing a high fever. Prolonged fever or dangerously high fevers can cause an onslaught of residual health problems, so it is always best to seek care than ignore the problem.

All three Urgency Room locations are equipped with physicians who have extensive emergency room experience as well as equipment to assess, diagnose and treat your illnesses, injuries and more.

Our Urgency Rooms include:

-       X-ray machines

-       CT scanner

-       Ultrasound

-       High-complexity lab

-       Sedation for adults and children

And once you leave our facilities, The Urgency Room has a large library of at-home aftercare videos for you to reference even after you’ve left our in-person care. Before, during and after illness, The Urgency Room has your well-being as our first priority.

If you’re in need of emergency care in the Twin Cities, look no further than The Urgency Room and avoid the crowds and long waits with your typical emergency room. Our facilities are owned and operated by members of the Emergency Physicians Professional Association, our board-certified physicians are here for you when you need medical care the most. We’ll always provide you with exceptional emergency care closer to home.

Urgency Room – Dehydration, Nausea, Vomiting

The Urgency Room fills the gap between urgent care and emergency care—especially for instances of dehydration, nausea and vomiting. Staffed by board-certified physicians, our standalone facilities are equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment to treat your injuries, ailments and illnesses. With The Urgency Room you won’t have to wait in a crowded waiting room only to be passed from person to person before getting the care you need. When minutes matter, come to The Urgency Room.

Our three locations are open 365 days a year, including holidays, from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Situated in Woodbury, Vadnais Heights and Eagan, The Urgency Room is the quick and convenient alternative to overcrowded and understaffed emergency rooms for residents throughout the Twin Cities.

Owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association (EPPA), our physicians have the experience and know-how to get you expert medical care when it’s most urgent. Everything we need to treat infants to adults for coughs and chronic pain to broken bones is on-site and ready at the helm.

If you want to see more of what we’re about or what we offer, check out our virtual tour of one of our facilities. Our friendly and amicable staff is always on-hand to take your calls and answer any questions you may have, too. When minutes matter, come to The Urgency Room for dehydration, nausea and vomiting.

What is Dehydration?

Dehydration kicks in any time the body loses more fluid than is being taken in. Even if you aren’t taking in water or hydrating yourself, your body is still expelling water as it moves out of individual cells and out of the body. Our bodies are even expelling water as we exhale and through other means, such as sweat, urine and stool.

Water is crucial our bodies: In fact, 75% of our weight is because of water. Dehydration is in full swing when the body stops being able to function normally.

There are Three Stages to Dehydration:

Mild: This stage is easily resolvable if you take in fluids, water or electrolytes that were lost during activity. Symptoms most associated with mild dehydration are thirst, dry mouth and darkening urine.

Moderate: Moderate dehydration can also be identified by excessive thirst and a dry or sticky mouth, but it also comes with symptoms such as infrequent urination, unusually dark yellow urine, dry skin, headaches and muscle cramps. You may notice the skin on your hands is dry or even stiff. Moderate dehydration can often be reversed at home by drinking more water or liquids with electrolytes.

Severe: Severe dehydration is a medical emergency and care should be sought right away. Symptoms pointing to severe dehydration include shock, sunken eyes, listlessness, dizziness, confusion, irritability and shriveled skin. If you’re experiencing severe dehydration, you might not be urinating at all and if you do, it’s very dark yellow or amber in color.

Dehydration can result from a number of activities. One way is to simply not be taking in enough fluids to keep up with how much your body is losing throughout the day. Other ways to become dehydrated include exercising, vomiting, severe diarrhea or fever.

If you’re concerned that you may have mild to severe dehydration, our physicians can help you. If you’re unsure of why you’re becoming dehydrated or if you need help becoming rehydrated, our staff and facilities are more than capable of assessing, diagnosing and treating dehydration to get you back on your feet.

Nausea

Nausea is unpleasant and can quickly escalate and ruin your day. The causes of nausea are widespread and it is often a symptom of another medical issue. Here are some possible sources of your nausea:

-       Stomach flu

-       Motion sickness

-       Morning sickness

-       Migraine/dizziness

-       Alcohol misuse

-       Depression

-       Food poisoning

-       Middle ear infection

-       High fever

-       Meningitis

These are more common reasons for experiencing nausea, however there are hundreds more possibilities ranging from milk allergies to cancer and reactions to medication. Most nausea can be treated with over-the-counter medicines or other treatments previously discussed with your doctor. However, if your nausea is persistent or is accompanied with other symptoms such as fainting, confusions, vomiting, high fever, chest pain or blurred vision, it’s time to seek medical care.

If you live in Minneapolis, St. Paul or surrounding Twin Cities neighborhoods, come to The Urgency Room. Our physicians will be able to see you quicker than if you went to a typical emergency room and our services will cost you less. Don’t wait around, ignoring your symptoms, when you need medical attention as soon as possible.

Vomiting

Much like dehydration and nausea, the cause for vomiting can be difficult to pinpoint. Oftentimes, nausea and vomiting go hand in hand within the world of symptoms. Vomiting can come in waves and through involuntary contractions in the walls of the stomach. The contents of vomit are always from the stomach, although coughing up mucus from the lungs can be confused as vomiting at times.

Both nausea and vomiting are controlled by the part of the brain responsible for involuntary bodily functions. Many of the causes of nausea are the same for vomiting:

-       Food poisoning

-       Stomach flu

-       Severe migraine

-       Motion sickness

-       Alcohol misuse

Vomiting can also be a side effect of cancer, tumors or eating disorders among many other reasons. If you’re unsure of what is causing vomiting, or if it is persistent and uncontrollable, come to The Urgency Room. We can assess and treat those who are vomiting to help quell the action and start you on your road to recovery.

The Urgency Room Can Get You Back on Your Feet Fast!

There are times where dehydration, nausea and vomiting all happen as a result of each other. It is possible for dehydration to cause nausea, which then causes vomiting. By coming to The Urgency Room of Eagan, Woodbury or Vadnais Heights, you’ll be on your way to health quicker than ever.

Not only can we help you in our facility, but we can help you at home, too. With our extensive library of after-care videos, you can learn how to take care of yourself after you’ve left our physicians. Our first priority is your health and well-being.

Twin Cities’ Premier Care for Acute Injury Treatment

The Urgency Room is the much-needed place to go for when your medical needs lie somewhere between a trip to an emergency room and a visit to an urgent care. Our locations in Vadnais Heights, Woodbury and Eagan are owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association (EPPA), so you can always come with the peace of mind that you’ll receive the best care possible for your acute injuries.

Each UR location has expansive hours and is open from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM 365 days per year, including holidays. The Urgency Room is well-known for providing high-quality service along with short waiting room times. Each UR location updates wait times in real time on its website, so you can get treated when minutes matter most. Don’t put off getting your acute pains or injuries looked at by a medical professional simply because of the wait and costs associated with your typical emergency room. Get treated at The Urgency Room today.

What is an Acute Injury?

While chronic injuries are slow to develop and last for long spans of time, acute injuries happen suddenly and usually as a result from an impact of some sort. For example, if you fall and scrape your knees or get hit with a ball, you’ll experience a sudden and harsh pain that is usually accompanied by swelling, bleeding or bruising. These types of injuries happen abruptly, but the pain will cease once the site of the injury is completely healed. For example, if you cut your hand, the pain will subside once the cut has healed properly. An acute injury can include:

• Sprain
• Strain
• Break
• Torn ligament
• Cut/scrape
• Torn muscles

If an acute injury and all it entails isn’t visibly clear, a physician will have to conduct further tests to determine its extent. Sometimes it may appear you have a sprain, when in reality you’ve suffered a broken bone. The only way to be sure is to undergo X-rays or other testing. Each Urgency Room location is stocked with all of the medical equipment needed to treat your urgent care needs quickly. With X-rays, CT scanners, ultrasounds, high-complexity labs and more, the level of care you’ll receive at any UR location is going to be above and beyond what you’ve come to know at your typical emergency room.

Our state-of-the-art facilities can treat acute injuries. Our experienced physicians can expertly evaluate, diagnose and treat you in a quick and efficient way so you can get back to living. Some of the acute injuries we can treat include:

Acute Knee Injury

Knees are built to take on a tremendous amount of force.  You count on strong knees to carry you through the day and for your more physical activities, such as participating in athletics. A lot can happen to your knee, from fracturing your kneecap to damaging the ligaments, each injury should be thoroughly examined and treated accordingly.

Kneecaps can break horizontally or vertically; one portion can break off or the whole patella can shatter. This type of acute knee injury usually happens after experiencing direct trauma or a very powerful contraction of the muscles surrounding the kneecap (the quadriceps).

When you tear a ligament, such as the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) or the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), can happen from overextension or blunt trauma. Diagnosing ACL injuries can be difficult and may even go unnoticed—you won’t take that risk when coming to your nearest Urgency Room as we specialize in diagnosing and evaluating acute injuries such as these.

Fractures

Whether they’re caused by direct or indirect forces, a fracture can be a non-accidental injury, occult injury, pathological fracture or stress fracture. A non-accidental injury consists of injuries that were neglected or have a vague history. An occult injury is one that went unnoticed for a period of time. A pathological fracture is the result of a preexisting condition—like spina bifida—or if the bone is weakened by a cyst or tumor. Lastly, a stress fracture happens with an increase of activity, such as in sports, and happens mostly in lower limbs.

Dislocated Joints

Dislocations are when a bone comes out of its joint—such as a shoulder being pulled from its socket. When this happens, the muscles surrounding the joint go into spasm while cartilage and tissues are stretched and torn, resulting in a great amount of pain. If possible, a dislocated joint will try to be relocated as soon as possible, even on the site of the injury.

Nearly any joint on your body can be dislocated and treatment should be sought immediately if treating on-site isn’t possible. You need quick care for dislocated joints as the bone could be damaging nerves, ligaments or blood vessels since slipping out of its socket. Dislocations happen as a result of unbalanced or blunt impact. Taking a hard and direct hit to one shoulder in the middle of a football game, for example, could cause that shoulder to dislocate. Once a joint is dislocated, moving that joint could be painful and extremely difficult. You might even feel numbness in the area of dislocation. Once a joint is dislocated, the ligaments surrounding the joint are weakened and the possibility of dislocating that same joint in the future increases.

Get Acute Injuries Treated Fast

Acute injuries happen suddenly and need immediate care. If you sprain, strain, break or tear something, get to your nearest Urgency Room. Each  location can see you quickly to stop the pain and start the healing. And when you leave our care, you still aren’t alone. Our physicians have assembled an extensive library of at-home and aftercare videos for you after you leave our facility.

Stop enduring acute pain when you don’t need to. Instead, get to the Urgency Room for fast, accurate and high-quality treatment. Our physicians put the patient first so you can get back to living your life sooner than going to an emergency room.

CT Scans When You Most Need Them

The Urgency Room is exactly what you’ve been looking for — a  medical facility with shorter wait times and better care. Our facilities are owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association (EPPA), which means you’ll always be in the hands of highly experienced physicians. Our convenient locations in Eagan, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury are open 365 days per year, including holidays, from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM, so you can rest assured that we are here for when you may need medical help most.

Out state-of-the-art standalone facilities are stocked with advanced equipment including:

- X-Ray Machine

- Ultrasound

- High-complexity Lab

- Sedation Capabilities

- CT Scanner

Our comprehensive equipment ensures we’ll be able to help you with a wide spectrum of problems, from identifying complex symptoms to treating you with what’s best. From kidney stones to broken bones, The Urgency Room of Eagan, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury can help you in a fraction of the time. And when you need services such as a CT scan, you don’t want to be waiting around. When minutes matter, come to us!

What is a CT Scanner?

Computed tomography, or CT as it’s widely known as, is commonly used to quickly and accurately detect internal injuries. While a CT scanner functions differently than an X-Ray machine, it still uses X-Rays as a means of taking images of different parts of the body. Much larger than a traditional X-Ray machine, CT scanners use a gantry, which is a large metal circle that stands vertically. When receiving a CT scan, the patient lays flat on a bed that moved through the center of the gantry. While the bed moves horizontally through the gantry, moving X-Ray tubes within the gantry rotate around the patient, capturing images from all angles instead of just one like with a standard X-Ray.

A CT scanner’s X-Rays make full rotations around a patient in order to capture “slices” of the patient. Instead of receiving a flat image, physicians are able to obtain images of internal cross-sections that they can assemble, take apart turn and examine from different angles. The resulting 3D images enable physicians to be able to examine the skeleton, organs and tissues of a patient while trying to pinpoint abnormalities such as bleeding, fluid or tumors.

When Do You Need a CT Scan?

When your medical urgency calls for more information than a standard static X-Ray can provide, a CT scan may be in order. CT scans are quick and painless, and they provide a vast amount of crucial information in regard to internal injuries specifically as they can detect blood vessels and soft tissues along with bones. For example, if you are feeling severe internal discomfort when you come into your nearest Urgency Room, a CT scan could see if you’re suffering from excess fluid or internal bleeding—things a standard X-Ray may not detect as well.

 CT scanners are excellent tools to detect:

- Broken bones

- Tumors

- Infections

- Blood clots

- Excess fluids

- Cystic fibrosis

- Injuries from trauma

Along with being able to detect and locate those internal abnormalities, a CT scanner can also help physicians identify issues such as heart disease or cancer. As with a standard X-Ray, you must be free of metal jewelry or accessories before getting a CT scan. In some instances, you may be asked to take or be injected with a substance called a contrast medium. When taken by mouth or injected through a vein, a contrast medium will help highlight specific areas to be examined during a CT scan. It could help identify a clot or internal bleeding among other medical problems.

Having a CT scan taken of your body can take just minutes with our advanced equipment. Once completed, our physicians will be able to examine the results on digital images of your internal injuries or ailments. The CT scan is a very safe and reliable procedure that helps physicians at your nearest Urgency Room identify, assess and treat what could be causing you pain and discomfort.

The Urgency Room is Ready to Help You

If you’ve recently experienced trauma or blunt force, or are feeling internal discomfort—symptoms of internal bleeding or broken bones varies depending on location—come to your nearest Urgency Room. Our wait times are updated live and are a fraction of the time you would wait elsewhere. Situated right off of major highways, our locations are convenient to those in Minneapolis, St. Paul or surrounding suburbs.

When you need treatment fast, coming to an Urgency Room is one of the best decisions you can make. Our physicians are caring, accurate and experienced, and they can help get you back on your feet quickly.  First and foremost, we care about you and your well-being. Even after you leave our care, you can gain insight and care instructions with our broad library of aftercare videos. When you come to The Urgency Room, you’ll be getting way more than the long wait and short attention you’d receive elsewhere.  

If you’d like to see more, check out our virtual tour of a typical Urgency Room. You can also call with any questions you may have before stopping in! Our friendly and caring team is here to answer your questions and give you the peace of mind that The Urgency Room is the place for you if you need high-quality medical care quickly—including CT scans and internal examinations. Call, come in or check us out today! You’ll be glad you did.

Allergy Care for Minneapolis and St. Paul

Meet The Urgency Room. If you’re avoiding urgent care clinics because of packed waiting areas and wait times that last hours, don’t wait any longer. When minutes matter, you can rest assured that you’ll be seen and your ailments will be assessed in a fraction of the time it would take you to be seen at other medical clinics.

Each Urgency Room location in Eagan, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury has convenient hours, open from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM 365 days per year, including holidays. Before stopping by, you can check online to see how long of a wait you can expect to have before one of our physicians can see you. Sometimes, the wait is just a couple of minutes as opposed to a couple of hours elsewhere. Our easy accessibility and friendly staff make coming to The Urgency Room for your allergy needs a no-brainer.

When your allergies start acting up, no matter what stirs them, don’t wait around and suffer through them. Don’t let your breathing be affected longer than it has to be. The Urgency Room can help allergy-sufferers in the Twin Cities with quick assessment, diagnosis and treatment, so you can be back on your way. Each state-of-the-art Urgency Room is outfitted with everything our highly experienced physicians need to treat you with the best care possible. Each UR is owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association (EPPA), which means you’re always in good hands from the minute you step through our doors.

The seasons in Minnesota change rapidly and each one seemingly brings with it a new set of allergies. If you’re tired of suffering through allergy symptom after allergy symptom, get relief at your nearest Urgency Room today.

What are Allergies?

The reason humans have allergies is still somewhat of a mystery. After all, why would your body attack pretty harmless substances while simultaneously making you miserable or, even worse, causing you harm? Allergies can be spurred by a wide variety of triggers—pet dander, blooming flowers, bug venom, foods and more. With so many sources for allergy-inducing substances, odds are good that you or several people you know suffer from allergies. Substances that cause allergies, such as pet dander, can be detected by our bodies as harmful (even though they aren’t). Once these “invaders” are detected, our bodies release antibodies, which are sent out to help fight infections and protect ourselves.

When our immune systems release antibodies in response to coming into contact with allergens, we experience allergic reactions such as itchy skin or swollen sinuses and airways. This reaction is what causes hives, rashes, swelling, runny noses or difficulty breathing when you come into contact with something you are allergic to.

The type of allergic reaction you have, if any, depends on what you come into contact with that causes your immune system to release antibodies. Some symptoms of an allergic reaction to food, certain drugs or medications, bee stings or environmental elements could include:

• Rash/hives
• Eczema
• Redness
• Swelling of the face, throat or airways
• Itching/tingling
• Anaphylaxis

When left untreated, any of these symptoms can rapidly progress. For example, if you feel short of breath after getting stung by a bee, you could be at risk for anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis could cause your throat to swell and your airways to close. This could cause you to go into shock and is life-threatening. Symptoms of anaphylaxis include nausea, lightheadedness, shortness of breath or inability to breath, and even a loss of consciousness.

Never risk ingesting or touching something that may trigger an allergic reaction for you. Nearly 40 percent of adults and 30 percent of children, roughly 50 million people in the U.S., suffer from allergies of some sort. The number of people who endure allergies is on the rise, though, which means even more people have to prepared for when an allergic reaction strikes. What’s more is that many allergic reaction-triggering substances occur all around our day-to-day environments. For example, peanuts and milk are the top two most common food allergies—and are also common lunchroom staples. Some common allergy triggers include:

Plants: Poison ivy, poison oak, poison sumac, trees, grass and weed pollen, mold

Foods: Milk, peanuts, soy, eggs, wheat, tree nuts, fish and shellfish

Drugs: Penicillin, amoxicillin, sulfa drugs, tetracycline, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), codeine, morphine

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Insects: Cockroaches, dust mites, bees, wasps, hornets, ants

What to do When You're Having an Allergic Reaction

You may already manage your allergies. Being in Minnesota, you’re exposed to your fair share of seasonal allergies all year long. If you know where your allergies stem from, the best treatment is simply avoiding them. Some allergens are easier to avoid than others: For instance, it’s easier to avoid eating shellfish than it is avoiding pollen in the air. If you can’t avoid allergens, though, consider taking antihistamines (Benadryl) or even hydrocortisone cream for hives or rashes. When an allergic emergency occurs, such as a bee sting, and your reaction is severe, make sure to have an epinephrine shot nearby. A quick shot from an EpiPen could be the difference between life and death while you’re on your way to seeking medical treatment.

The Urgency Room Can Treat Your Allergies Now

You don’t have to suffer through another season of allergies. Whether you live in Minneapolis, St. Paul or anywhere in between, coming to an Urgency Room today could have you quickly on the road to allergy relief. If you want to check out all we have to offer, see all the symptoms, ailments and illnesses we can treat now. And once you leave our clinic, you won’t be alone. Our library of aftercare videos can help you with questions you may have after leaving our care. When you need high-quality medical help fast, look no further than The Urgency Room.

When You Need X-rays, Get to the Urgency Room

There are many reasons you might need x-rays in your lifetime—breaks, sprains, coughs, you name it! It is a tool widely used in medical offices, including each Urgency Room location. Our state-of-the-art facilities are stocked with equipment that can comprehensively and accurately assess and diagnose the coughs, aches and pains you come through our doors with. Owned and operated by the Emergency Physicians Professional Association, some of highest quality physicians in the Twin Cities put their know-how into all they do at The Urgency Room.

Not only is each Urgency Room in Eagan, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury outfitted with the necessary equipment to ensure accurate and fast care, but each is open from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM 365 days of the year. That means no matter if you are seeking care on Christmas or the weekend, our Urgency Room physicians and staff are waiting to help you now. Each location’s waiting times are updated live so you know what to expect when it comes to waiting. Long gone are the days of wasting an entire Saturday waiting for the medical care you need now.

Whether you have a cough that won’t go away, an allergy that’s stuffing you up or a bone you suspect is broken, The Urgency Room can help you. Along with our high-complexity labs, CT scanners and highly knowledgeable physicians, our X-ray machines could be the key to finding, assessing and diagnosing your medical needs.

What is an X-ray?

X-rays have been around for quite some time. In 1895, German professor Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen first discovered X-rays by chance as a tube on his desk, holding a glass bulb with positive and negative electrodes, started glowing with a fluorescent light. He concluded the tube was emitting a new sort of ray, and in light of its mysterious nature, the rays were aptly named X-rays, or X-radiation.

As electromagnetic waves, X-rays have short wavelengths and high energy, which can pass through materials that visible light can’t pass through as the light waves are totally absorbed. X-rays, on the other hand, aren’t absorbed by paper, cloth or even skin. When you get an X-ray taken at the Urgency Room, X-ray-sensitive film is placed on one side of your body while X-rays are shot through you from the other. The X-rays passing through you aren’t absorbed by your skin, which is why you don’t see skin on X-rays, but dense bones, teeth and any metal in your body, absorb them. The X-ray film shows the shadows of what absorbed the rays within your body.

While X-rays pass through your body, it’s important to remember that it’s a painless and relatively harmless procedure. Some precautions are taken—you shouldn’t have an X-ray taken if you’re pregnant—but your bones won’t be affected by these tests. In fact, you won’t even feel that it’s happening.

Why Do You Have an X-Ray Taken?

As mentioned, X-rays are great for identifying bones, metal or other X-ray-absorbing materials within your body to identify potential problems. While X-rays are great for clearly identifying cracks or fractures in bones, they can identify many other potential medical problems as well. Some reasons you might need an X-ray include:

Bone Problems:

- Fractures

- Infections

- Arthritis

- Cavities in your teeth

- Osteoporosis

- Bone tumors for identifying cancer

Chest Problems:

- Breast cancer

- Enlarged heart

- Lung infection

- Clogged blood vessels

Abdomen Problems:

- Miscellaneous swallowed objects

- Digestive tract

X-ray testing is one of the best ways to examine a suspected broken bone. By taking images from multiple angles, these X-rays can show a physician what type of a break you have, the severity, and what can be done to stabilize and heal the bone. But beyond bones, X-rays are also absorbed by dense fusions, which is why arthritis and osteoporosis can be detected.

Other ailments such as sinus infections can also be keenly identified using X-ray testing. Normal, healthy sinuses are usually clear of blockage and full of air, which makes them appear black on an X-ray as nothing is present to absorb the rays. When an infection is present, the buildup of mucus or pus in the once clear sinuses will absorb rays and leave a shadow on the X-ray film. This same theory applies to detecting infections in other airways or cavities that are clear or empty when healthy.

Sometimes you may be asked to ingest or receive an injection of a contrast medium. Usually made of barium or iodine, this contrast medium absorbs X-rays and can reveal potential medical problems when examining areas like the digestive tract. In rare occasion, contrast medium can cause some side effects. X-rays requiring the aid of a contrast medium may also take longer than a standard X-ray.

After having an X-ray taken, the next step simply involves a physician or radiologist to examine the images to see exactly what the problems were as well as their extent. In the majority of instances, you can go on with your normal day-to-day activities. A typical X-ray won’t make you feel different—you shouldn’t be lightheaded, dizzy or nauseous. However, if you did ingest a contrast medium, drinking lots of fluids will help it clear from your body quicker, thus diminishing the odds of negative side effects.

Get X-rays Taken When You Need Them

If you fear you have a broken bone, your child swallowed something, or you have relentless sinus infection troubling your every breath, the last thing you want to do is sit in a waiting area for hours. When you come into the Urgency Room, you’ll be greeted by our friendly staff and seen by our knowledgeable physicians in a fraction of the time you would wait elsewhere. Our convenient locations in Eagan, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury have everything to help you with your urgent medical needs. Don’t wait to get an X-ray taken any longer. If you’re in the Twin Cities, come to your nearest Urgency Room today.