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 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.
Sethuraman
Usha
U
Division of Emergency Medicine, Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan/Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.
Siadat
Marjan
M
Lepak-Hitch
Cynthia A
CA
Haritos
Demetris
D
D000006:Abdomen, Acute / Q000209:etiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003951:Diagnostic Errors / Q000517:prevention & control; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D012307:Risk Factors