Abstract
An 82-year-old female non-smoker with a history of hypertension presented with increasing dyspnea, cough and some purulent sputum without fever. Upon admission, the patient was in a distressed condition. Auscultation revealed diminished breath sounds with no rales over the right lung. An examination of the heart revealed a regular rhythm and a systolic murmur radiating from the apex of the heart. There was no pitting edema in the lower extremities. The blood tests showed mild leukocytosis and an increased C-reactive protein level. The $O_2$ saturation was 98 % whilst breathing room air. The electrocardiogram demonstrated sinus tachycardia. The chest radiograph showed a moderate cardiomegaly, right lobe infiltrates, and blunting of the both costophrenic sulcus suggesting a small pleural effusion. Three days after admission, the symptoms became slightly aggravated despite being treated with empirical antibiotics for presumed community-acquired pneumonia. Transthoracic color Doppler echocardiography indicated an ejection fraction of 48 %, mild left ventricular enlargement, and moderate left atrial enlargement resulting in severe mitral regurgitation. The clinical symptoms and right pulmonary edema resolved quickly with intravenous furosemide treatment.
승모판 폐쇄 부전증에 의한 심부전의 경우 대부분 양측폐에 대칭적으로 폐부종이 발생하지만 일부의 경우 국소적인 폐부종 형태로 나타날 수 있으며 대부분 우상엽에 발생하며 우중엽에 동반되기도 한다. 승모판 폐쇄 부전증 환자의 흉부 방사선 소견상 일측성 침윤이 보일때 폐렴과 국소적인 폐부종을 감별해야 할 것이다.