Chest
-
The role of portable high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters for supplemental aerosol mitigation during exercise testing is unknown and might be relevant during COVID-19 pandemic. ⋯ The portable HEPA filter reduced the concentration of aerosols generated during exercise testing by 96% ± 2% for all particle sizes and reduced aerosol room clearance time in clinical exercise testing laboratories. Portable HEPA filters therefore might be useful in clinical exercise testing laboratories to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
-
Case Reports
RESEARCH LETTER: Pulmonary function and risk of Alzheimer dementia: two-sample Mendelian randomization study.
A 38-year-old African American woman with a history of menometrorrhagia on previous estrogen therapy and a previously biopsied benign thyroid nodule with recent interval enlargement presented with symptoms of shortness of breath on exertion, an intermittent nonproductive cough, and right upper quadrant abdominal pain for 1 year. She denied wheezing, hemoptysis, fevers, night sweats, or unintentional weight loss. Socially, the patient was a lifelong nonsmoker and denied alcohol or drug use. ⋯ Recent cancer screening that included Papanicolaou smear and mammography were negative for neoplasia. Vital signs were normal, and ambulatory pulse oximetry did not demonstrate evidence of oxygen desaturation. Physical examination demonstrated normal respiratory effort, diffuse vesicular breath sounds, and a soft abdomen without hepatomegaly or right upper quadrant tenderness.
-
A 54-year-old man sought treatment at the ED for a productive cough with green phlegm of approximately 6 months' duration that was accompanied by a 10-pound weight loss, night sweats, and occasional subjective fevers. He had made several prior visits to the ED for the cough and was hospitalized 4 months earlier for similar symptoms, at which time he underwent a bronchoscopy with BAL and was discharged with antibiotics for presumed pneumonia. ⋯ The patient had a past medical history of grade III follicular lymphoma for which he completed six cycles of bendamustine 4 years before presentation and had been in remission since. He was a never smoker, had a recent travel history to the Dominican Republic 8 months before admission, and had no recent sick contacts.
-
Despite numerous advances in the understanding of the pathophysiology, progression, and management of acute respiratory failure (ARF) and ARDS, limited contemporary data are available on the mortality burden of ARF and ARDS in the United States. ⋯ The ARF-related mortality increased at approximately 3.4% annually, and ARDS-related mortality showed a lack of decline in the last 5 years. These data contextualize important health information to guide priorities for research, clinical care, and policy, especially during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in the United States.
-
A 52-year-old man presented with hemoptysis of 2 weeks' duration. He had been experiencing hoarseness, right-sided pleuritic chest pain, subjective fevers, chills, night sweats, and 10 pounds weight loss for the previous 2 months. He additionally reported severe frontal headaches, nasal congestion, and intermittent epistaxis, which had been present for a year before his current presentation. He had worked in construction and denied tobacco or illicit drug use.