In: Nursing
A 67-year-old female patient presents to the emergency room you work at complaining of shortness of breath and pain on the right side of her chest. Upon auscultation of the lung field during the physical exam, you note flatness and diminished breath sounds over the right lung. Her temperature is 101.3°F.
Most probably the case is pneumonia .
Differential diagnoses are pleurisy, pneumo thorax, myocarditis..etc
History, physical examination, Chest x ray, Blood investigation like complet blood count, ecg etc are the urgent diagnostic tests to confirm the diagnoses. Chest x ray may help to differentiate pnemothorax amd pneumonia cases..pathophysiology to be explained to pt realative.as follows..
Lung cells infected by bacteria which leads to inflammation and cause fever.it may lead to right sided pain and produces sputum which leads to decreased air entry .