Sandbox:iqra

SLE resident survival guide:

SLE Presentation Fatigue Fever Myalgia Joint tenderness Muscle weakness Weight changes Less common Presentation Dysphagia Peptic ulcer disease Intestinal pseudo-obstruction Protein-losing enteropathy Acute pancreatitis Pneumonitis Pleuritis Pulmonary hemorrhage Interstitial lung disease Pulmonary emboli Pulmonary hypertension Pericarditis Myocarditis Seizures Stroke Psychosis Nephrotic syndrome
Focused History Onset, duration and progression of symptoms History of weight changes (gain or loss) Anorexia Arthritis, arthralgias, or muscle pain Morning stiffness Skin rashes and their association to flare ups, especially after exposure to sunlight Medications and their association to flare ups Infections especially mononucleosis Sores in the mouth, nose, or other mucous membranes Symptoms of other organ failure Renal failure: Recent peripheral edema and weight gain Cardiac involvement: Tachycardia, dyspnea, chest pains History of having a pet Hair loss Job history Co-morbid conditions include: Other rheumatologic and autoimmune diseases Hypertension Diabetes, immunodeficiency Seizures, or other nervous system symptoms Family history of rheumatologic diseases
Physical Examination Vitals A fever is often present. The periodicity of fever may have clinical significance in selected contexts. Weak or absent pulse may be present in Takayasu's arteritis. Physiologically, fever is accompanied by tachycardia. Relative bradycardia (Faget's sign) may be present in legionellosis, brucellosis, psittacosis, leptospirosis, drug fever, or factitious fever. Skin Janeway lesions may be present in infective endocarditis. Petechiae may be present in Rocky Mountain spotted fever. maculopapular, vesicular, or petechial rash may be present in typhus. An eschar at the site of the tick bite may be present in tick-borne diseases. Swollen lymph nodes may be present. Lymphadenopathy may represent reactive lymphoid hyperplasia (suggestive of inflammation or infection) or underlying malignant processes such as lymphoma. Rose spots (blanching pink papules 2–3 mm in diameter) may be present on the trunk in salmonellosis. Macules, papules, and nodules may be present on the trunk and extremities in meningococcemia. Macules or petechiae evolving into vesicles and pustules on a hemorrhagic base may be present in disseminated gonococcal infection. Diffuse hyperpigmentation may be present in Whipple's disease. Papules and nodules evolving into crusted, verrucous growths may be present in blastomycosis. Warty nodules and subcutaneous abscesses may be present in coccidioidomycosis. Erythematous papules, pustules, subcutaneous nodules, or cellulitis may be present in cryptococcosis. Sister Mary Joseph nodule (palpable nodule bulging into the umbilicus) may be present in metastasis of a malignant tumor in the pelvis or abdomen. Multiple purplish papules, nodules, and plaques may be present on the scalp, face, and neck in lymphoma. Multiple erythematous, painful plaques with small bumps, pustules, and vesicles may be present in Sweet's syndrome. Palpable purpura may be present on the lower extremities and other areas of dependency in cutaneous vasculitis. Head Temporal artery tenderness with weak pulse may be present in temporal arteritis. Sinus tenderness may be present in sinusitis. Eyes Roth's spots or conjunctival hemorrhage may be present in infective endocarditis. Photophobia or ocular pain on palpation suggestive of uveitis may be present in Wegener's granulomatosis, Behcet syndrome, Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome, or infections. Mouth Oral thrush caused by candidiasis may be present in patients with HIV/AIDS. Oral ulcers may be present in systemic lupus erythematosis, disseminated histoplasmosis, and Behcet syndrome. Tenderness with a palpable abscess may be present in periodontal disease. Petechiae on the palate may be present in infective endocarditis. Parotid gland enlargement and tenderness may be present in infections (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus, tuberculosis, mumps, HIV), Sjogren's syndrome, or sarcoidosis. Neck Cervical lymph nodes may be present in inflammation, infection, lymphoma, or Kikuchi disease. Enlargement of the thyroid gland may be present in thyroiditis. Lungs Rales or rhonchi may be present in pneumonia. Fremitus with diminished breath sounds may be present in pneumonia. Heart Heart murmurs may be present in endocarditis secondary to infections (infective endocarditis), systemic lupus erythematosus (Libman-Sacks endocarditis), or chronic diseases (marantic endocarditis). Abdomen Abdominal tenderness may be present in intra-abdominal infections. Rebound tenderness may be present in intra-abdominal infections. An acute abdomen may be present in intra-abdominal infections. Guarding may be present in intra-abdominal infections. Flank pain may be present in psoas muscle abscess, perinephric abscess, or pyelonephritis. An inguinal mass may be present in psoas muscle abscess. Splenomegaly may be present in infectious mononucleosis, splenic abscess, or hepatitis. Genitourinary Prostatic enlargement may be present in prostatic abscess. Epididymal nodule may be present in epididymitis. Testicular nodule may be present in polyarteritis nodosa. Extremities Osler's nodes may be present in infective endocarditis. Swollen joints with effusion may be present in infectious arthritis or rheumatic diseases. Splinter hemorrhage in the nail beds may be present in infective endocarditis. Limb tenderness along deep veins may be present in deep vein thrombosis or thrombophlebitis. Neurologic Altered mental status may be present. Cranial nerve deficits may be present in cerebral vasculitis associated with systemic lupus erythematosus.
Laboratory Workup CBC with DC SMA-7 AST, ALT, LDH, bilirubin, and ALP Creatine kinase Blood cultures, at least 2 sets Urinalysis with microscopic examination Urine cultures Erythrocyte sedimentation rate C-reactive protein Gamma-glutamyl transferase Coombs test Cold agglutinins Ferritin Angiotensin-converting enzyme Thyroid peroxidase and anti-thyroglobulin antibodies Antinuclear antibodies Rheumatoid factor Cryoglobulins CMV serology and heterophile antibody test if ⊕ atypical lymphocytes Q fever serology if ⊕ exposure to livestocks HIV serology Serum protein electrophoresis Tuberculin skin test Fecal occult blood test
Imaging Study Chest Radiograph Chest radiograph should be considered as a part of the initial diagnostic workup. Echocardiography Echocardiography should be considered when suspecting endocarditis. Abdominal Ultrasonography Abdominal ultrasonography should be considered when suspecting hepatobiliary pathology. Chest CT Scan Chest CT scan may detect nodular lesions (s/o malignancy or fungal/mycobacterial/nocardial infection) or mediastinal adenopathy (s/o lymphoma, histoplasmosis, or sarcoidosis). Abdominal CT Scan Abdominal CT scan should be considered when suspecting intra-abdominal abscess or malignancy. Positron Emission Tomography PET may be useful in localizing the nidus of fever of unknown origin.
Other Investigation Lymph Node Biopsy Lymph node biopsy may be useful when suspecting lymphoma, lymphogranuloma venereum, toxoplasmosis, and Kikuchi disease. Granuloma may indicate disorders associated with granulomatous inflammation (eg, tuberculosis, sarcoidosis) or lymphoma. Bone Marrow Biopsy Bone marrow biopsy may be considered when suspecting intracellular infectious pathogens or hematologic malignancies. Discontinuation of Nonessential Medications Nonessential medications should be discontinued. Defervescence in less than 72 hours after discontinuing the culprit medication suggests drug fever. Rechallenge with the offending agent usually results in recurrence of drug fever. Trial of Empiric Antibiotics Therapeutic trials of antimicrobial agents may be considered if other techniques fail to disclose the etiology. An infectious etiology is likely if abatement of fever occurs after the administration of empiric antibiotics. Naproxen Test Naproxen test (375 mg twice daily) can be used to distinguish neoplastic fever from other etiologies. Naproxen test is considered positive when there is a rapid or sustained abatement of fever during the 3 days of the trial period. Defervescence within 12 hours occurs in almost all patients with neoplastic fever. Fever recurs after discontinuation of naproxen in patients with neoplasms. Naproxen demonstrated no antipyretic activity against fever in patients with occult infection.