title: Diarrhoea as the presenting sign in an adolescent suffering from severe acute respiratory syndrome.
abstract: Patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) may present with extra-pulmonary symptoms. We report a 16-year-old adolescent with SARS who presented with diarrhoea. Treatment directed against SARS was prompted by an epidemiological link and the clinical picture as the disease evolved. This atypical presentation posed a diagnostic challenge for physicians.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Proper disposal of patient excreta is important to prevent the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Princess Margaret Hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital Road, Lai Chi Kok, Kwai Chung, Kowloon, Hong Kong. kwanyw@netvigator.com
authors.forename: Yat Wah
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.forename: Chi Wai
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Man Chun
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Chiu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D006854:Hydrocortisone