J Emerg Med
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Urinomas are rare and generally result from trauma to any part of the urinary collecting system. Appropriate imaging is crucial in the timely diagnosis and management of urinomas and for ruling out other etiologies such as subcapsular renal hematomas and perinephric abscesses. ⋯ A 31-year-old woman with no past medical history or known trauma presented to the Emergency Department (ED) with a week of right flank pain, abdominal pain, and intermittent fevers. On point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS), she was found to have a complex right perinephric collection, later confirmed with computed tomography (CT) imaging. She was treated with intravenous (IV) antibiotics and discharged after a 3-day hospital admission with instructions to follow up with Urology. A day later, she was readmitted with worsening bilateral flank pain and persistent fevers. Image-guided percutaneous aspirations of her bilateral perinephric fluid collections revealed both urine and blood. A right ureteral stent was then placed with ultimate resolution of her symptoms. Why Should an Emergency Physician Be Aware of This? Urinomas without history of trauma are rare and should be on the differential for patients presenting with flank pain and infectious symptoms. Urinomas or other expanding perinephric fluid collections can result in superimposed infection, rupture, secondary hypertension, and renal failure. Here, we present an atypical case of atraumatic bilateral renal subcapsular urinomas with hemorrhagic components in a young and healthy woman. Our case further outlines the utility of POCUS in the ED for the timely diagnosis and management of this disease process.
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Symptomatic arsenic toxicity has not been associated with terracotta pottery despite thousands of years of use in food storage and preparation. We describe a case of chronic arsenic toxicity from undiagnosed pica involving the ingestion of terracotta pots. ⋯ A 49-year-old woman with a history of anemia and abnormal uterine bleeding presented to the Emergency Department complaining of lower extremity pain. She was also noted to have chronic lower extremity paresthesia, constipation, and fatigue. She admitted to ingesting glazed and unglazed terracotta pots for the past 5 years. This unusual craving was thought to be a manifestation of pica in the setting of chronic anemia. The patient was found to have an elevated urinary arsenic concentration of 116 µg/24 h. An abdominal radiograph showed opacifications throughout her bowel, and she received whole bowel irrigation. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Pica is a common behavior in certain populations. Practicing clinicians should be familiar with the complications of pica, including chronic arsenic toxicity and its associated array of nonspecific symptoms.
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Case Reports
Streptococcal Toxic Shock Syndrome in a Pediatric Patient With Intramuscular Venous Malformation in the Neck.
Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS) is diagnosed based on signs of shock with multiorgan system involvement, a generalized erythematous macular rash, and rapidly progressive and destructive soft tissue infection. ⋯ The patient was a 2-year-old girl with intramuscular venous malformation in the neck in which an infection occurred, developing into STSS. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Group A streptococcal infections are common in children and usually have a mild clinical presentation, but may be life threatening in severe cases. Patients with venous malformations are known to have slow-flow anomalies with venous pooling, which can result in hypoxia and possible immune cell dysfunction. Thus, clinicians should be aware of STSS when a patient with venous malformation has a rapidly progressive infection.