Case presentation A 48-year-old man presented to the emergency department with fever, cough, progressive shortness of breath, and hemoptysis for the past five days. History Hypertension for 10 years Type 2 diabetes for 10 years He was recently given cefuroxime and acetaminophen for dyspnea and hemoptysis.
Investigations A physical examination revealed the following – Temperature – 37.3°C Pulse – 100 beats/min Breath rate – 40 breaths/min Blood pressure – 84/55 mmHg Pulse oxygen saturation – 64% Cyanotic lips Extensive wet rales in both lungs Cold, clammy limbs An arterial blood gas analysis revealed a pH of 7.47, a pCO2 of 50 mmHg, and a PO2 of 23 mmHg. Laboratory findings were as follows – White blood cells – 6.94 × 10*9/L Percentage of neutrophils – 83.5% Hemoglobin – 15.7 g/dL Platelets – 179 × 10*9/L Procalcitonin – 0.69 ng/mL C-reactive protein – 190.3 mg/L A chest X-ray revealed…
