Jonathan Bland

Pathophysiology
Prof. Lori McGowan
March 6, 2011
W3A3 Case A

A child is suffering from high fever of 104 degrees F, cough, and breathing difficulty. The
doctor performed a streptococcus test of the throat that was negative. A blood test was done
and a chest x-ray was taken. Auscultation revealed crepitations with minimal rhonchi. In this
case we are asked to determine whether the child suffering from asthma, tuberculosis, or
pneumonia? How can you diagnose these three diseases? In this case the child is presenting
signs which lead me to believe that the child has a case of pneumonia. The clinical symptoms
of pneumonia can include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and little mucus when you cough.
They may come on gradually and are often less obvious and less severe than those of bacterial
pneumonia. Many people don't know that they have nonbacterial pneumonia because they do
not feel sick. (WebMD, 2009) We can diagnose these three diseases by the characteristics that
each present with the patient.
People with asthma experience symptoms when the airways tighten, inflame, or fill with
mucus. Common asthma symptoms include, coughing, especially at night, wheezing, shortness,
of breath, chest tightness, pain, or pressure. Patients suffering from asthma can find relief from
asthma by taking inhalers, steroids, anti-inflammatory drugs, and bronchilators.
Tuberculosis, commonly known as TB, is a bacterial infection that can spread through the
lymph nodes and bloodstream to any organ in your body -- and most often is found in the
lungs. The treatment for Tb is isoniazid (INH) for latent TB infections. Active TB infections can
include several antibiotics to prevent resistant bacteria from emerging in your body. Treatment
may be from six to twelve months. (WebMD, 2009)

We are also asked if the blood test determined neutrophilia and the x-ray revealed
numerous opacities at the bases of the lungs, what would be the diagnosis. The presence of
neutrophils being present in the lungs would suggest that the patient has a bacterial form of
pneumonia. Also another clue to this diagnosis is the fact that patient has a very high
temperature with the presence of crepitations with rhonchi. The x-rays of the chest would
include white areas of the film (which is fluid in the lungs) with spider like webs stretching
throughout the lung cavity.
Treatments for the child would be Tylenol and Motrin to control fever to start with, next the
child would need heavy doses of antibiotics to treat the bacterial pneumonia. Hospitalization is
a possibility for the patient depending on the severity of the infection, age, and medical history
of the patient.

Works Cited
Gould, B. E. (2006). Pathophysiology for the Health Professionals, 3rd Edition. Philadelphia: W.B.
Sauders.

WebMD. (2009, March 18). Pneumonia-Symptoms. Retrieved March 6, 2011, from WebMD:
http://www.webmd.com/lung/tc/pneumonia-symptoms

WebMD. (2009, Dec 9). Understanding Tuberculosis - Diagnosis and Treatment. Retrieved March 6,
2011, from WebMd.com: http://www.webmd.com/lung/understanding-tuberculosis-treatment