Book excerpt: Essential Emergency Trauma is a concise, reader-friendly, and portable reference on the care of trauma patients in the emergency department. Geared to practicing emergency physicians, residents, and medical students. Major sections cover trauma of each anatomic region. Each section opens with a chapter "The First 15 Minutes, Algorithm, and Decision Making." Subsequent chapters focus on specific injury patterns, emphasizing pathophysiology, diagnosis, evaluation, and management. The information is presented in bullet points with numerous tables and images. Each chapter ends with an up-to-date review of the "Best Evidence."