Search

Introduction: The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) has increased over the last two decades. Many patients with TB preferentially access healthcare via the emergency department (ED) prediagnosis, presenting an early opportunity for diagnosis., Methods: We looked at the number of patients who presented to ED in the 3 months prior to TB notification, and their outcomes., Results: 42% of all notifications had accessed ED prior to notification. The majority were hospitalised, with a proportion of these patients previously attending ED only to be discharged. 37% of patients were discharged from ED with many having TB symptoms, and only a minority referred onto TB clinic., Conclusions: The ED is often the first contact that urban TB patients have with healthcare. Healthcare professionals should ensure this diagnosis is not missed in high incidence areas as it has significant clinical and infection control consequences., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.)

The ventricular weights in 43 patients with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis were retrospectively compared with those in 172 patients with emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The mean right ventricular weight of patients with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and those with emphysema and chronic bronchitis was 85.5 g (SD 23.2) and 88.8 g (34.3), respectively. Thirty five patients (81%) with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis had a right ventricular weight over 65 g compared with 124 (72%) of those with emphysema. Fifty three per cent of both those with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and those with chronic bronchitis and emphysema had a right ventricular weight greater than 80 g. Differences between the two groups were not significant. These results suggest that the prevalence of right ventricular hypertrophy and pulmonary hypertension in interstitial pulmonary fibrosis is similar to that found in chronic bronchitis and emphysema.