ALL DEFINITIONS

Hypertensive Crisis

Definition

Hypertensive crisis is a severe and potentially life-threatening elevation in blood pressure that can lead to organ damage. It is classified into two types: urgent hypertensive crisis, which requires immediate medical attention but has no signs of organ damage, and emergency hypertensive crisis, which is accompanied by signs of organ damage and requires immediate hospitalization.

Emergency Medicine
When a health crisis can’t wait, our expert emergency care team is ready to respond 24/7, 365 days a year, at three locations across the greater New Haven area: our main campus at York Street, the Saint Raphael campus, and the Shoreline Medical Center in Guilford. Our board-certified emergency physicians, surgeons, and specialists, as well as emergency-trained nurses and support staff, are ready at any time to provide immediate care for any urgent illness and injury. People of all ages can receive care at any of our emergency departments. At York Street, children can be seen at a separate pediatric emergency department. Our adult services include: 24/7 in-house coverage by senior trauma surgeons Prompt availability of specialty physicians 24/7 physician coverage for the Crisis Intervention Unit, and a new 12-bed locked observation unit State-of-the-art resuscitation rooms for trauma and critical illness Acute stroke intervention at our accredited stroke center Chest Pain Center with the highest level of accreditation Helipad at the York Street campus that accommodates two helicopters for quick access Evaluation, assistance, and referrals for substance use patients Three board-certified toxicologists Separate radiology suite with two CT scanners The “Sharp Team“—an on-the-scene physician response team for emergent incidents — provides medical oversight and care at multiple casualty incidents, and complex or difficult extrications and rescues. For the needs of children, all of our pediatric emergency departments provide child- and family-centered care, with trained support staff on hand, including pediatric nurses, social workers, and child-life specialists. A dedicated, separate pediatric emergency room at the York Street campus, the first Level I Trauma Center in Connecticut, provides additional services for children, including: 16 pediatric patient rooms, and two resuscitation trauma rooms A pediatric transport team available 24/7 to provide critical care to infants and children en route to the hospital Pediatric critical care transport paramedics on staff 24/7 pediatric social worker Board-certified pediatric toxicologist Pediatric Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Program