NEXUS
Medical abbreviation · Emergency Medicine
| Stands for | National Emergency X-Radiography Utilization Study |
|---|---|
| Categories | Medical |
NEXUS stands for National Emergency X-Radiography Utilization Study, an emergency medicine abbreviation.
Clinical decision rule identifying blunt trauma patients who do not need cervical spine imaging: no midline neck tenderness, no focal neurological deficit, normal alertness, no intoxication and no painful distracting injury.
Example: NEXUS criteria met: no midline tenderness, alert, no deficits; C-collar cleared clinically.
Usage notes
Validated in a large multicenter study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2000. The five criteria are often remembered with the mnemonic NSAID. The Canadian C-Spine Rule is an alternative with somewhat different criteria. Neither rule replaces judgment in very young children.
Related abbreviations
More emergency medicine abbreviations
- MOST – Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment
- MSE – Medical screening examination
- MTP – Massive transfusion protocol
- MVA – Motor vehicle accident
- MVC – Motor vehicle collision
- NAT – Non-accidental trauma
- NOI – Nature of illness
- NPA – Nasopharyngeal airway
- NRP – Neonatal Resuscitation Program
- OD – Overdose
- OHCA – Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest
- OPA – Oropharyngeal airway
See all 97 emergency medicine abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.