Pulmonary embolism presenting as acute abdomen in a child and adult

Pulmonary embolisms (PEs) are easily missed both in children and adults because of the varied presentations and subtle clinical findings. Abdominal pain as the presenting symptom of PE is extremely rare in children and only reported as occasional case reports in adults. We present a series of 2 case...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of emergency medicine 2009-05, Vol.27 (4), p.514.e1-514.e5
Main Authors: Sethuraman, Usha, MD, Siadat, Marjan, MD, Lepak-Hitch, Cynthia A., MD, Haritos, Demetris, MD
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdomen
Abdomen, Acute - etiology
Adolescent
Adult
Adults
Anticoagulants
Blood clots
Blood pressure
Blood tests
Catheters
Children
Diagnostic Errors - prevention & control
Diagnostic Imaging - methods
Emergency
Emergency medical care
Families & family life
Family medical history
Humans
Hypertension
Male
Mutation
Oxygen saturation
Pain
Pediatrics
Proteins
Pulmonary arteries
Pulmonary Embolism - complications
Pulmonary Embolism - diagnosis
Pulmonary Embolism - therapy
Pulmonary embolisms
Risk Factors
Thrombosis
Trauma
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Description
Summary:Pulmonary embolisms (PEs) are easily missed both in children and adults because of the varied presentations and subtle clinical findings. Abdominal pain as the presenting symptom of PE is extremely rare in children and only reported as occasional case reports in adults. We present a series of 2 cases of PE presenting as acute abdomen. Case 1 is a 14-year-old adolescent boy who presented to a pediatric emergency department with abdominal pain, whereas case 2 is a 22-year-old man who presented to the adult emergency department of the same institution with abdominal pain. There was a delay in diagnosis in both cases due to lack of recognition of the unusual presentation. Awareness of the unusual presentations of PE and the risk factors in both adults and children can assist the clinician toward an accurate diagnosis and timely therapeutic intervention.
ISSN:0735-6757
1532-8171
DOI:10.1016/j.ajem.2008.07.040