Emergency Department Abdominal Computed Tomography for Nontraumatic Abdominal Pain: Optimizing Utilization

Clinical indicators of positive CT yield include pediatric age, leukocytosis, and a specified precomputed-tomography diagnosis. Positive CT results are a predictor for hospital admission. In one quarter of cases, computed tomography identifies clinically unsuspected diagnoses and thereby adds information important for patient management, even after clinical evaluation.