TITLE:
Pulmonary Tuberculosis Associated with Socioeconomic Vulnerability and Ineffective Support Network: Case Report
AUTHORS:
Michele Paula dos Santos, Gabriela Di Lorenzo Garcia Scherer, Carolina Hack Alves, Italo Trois Maestri, Carolina Boeira Soares, Carlos Augusto Treviso, Stella Duarte Pinto, Ana Paula Wagner Steinmetz, Laura Gomes Boabaid de Barros, Maria Eduarda Perobelli Buzetto, Gabriel Lorentz Trein, Guilherme Boeira Soares, Aline Porto, Brendda Pereira Gomes, Fernanda Bercht Merten, Luane Pereira Gomes, Bárbara Adelmann de Lima, Rafaela Siviero Caron-Lienert, Miriam Viviane Baron
KEYWORDS:
Smoking, Kidney Disease, Sepsis, Respiratory Failure
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Biosciences and Medicines,
Vol.11 No.5,
May
17,
2023
ABSTRACT: Tuberculosis is one of the 10 leading causes of death in the world. Its symptoms include fever, malaise, weakness, weight loss, chest pain, cough, expectoration, shortness of breath and sepsis, which is its most frequent complication. Due to these symptoms, many patients with tuberculosis require admission to the Intensive Care Unit, where they usually are placed on mechanical ventilation. Tuberculosis is more prevalent in the population in situations of social and economic vulnerability. The main factors that interfere with adherence to treatment and the prognosis of these patients are the patient’s support network and their socioeconomic status. We present the following report of a long-time smoker patient, with chronic kidney disease and previous treatment for tuberculosis, who was brought to the emergency room due to lowering of the sensorium, and was immediately placed on mechanical ventilation. The tests suggested sepsis with a respiratory focus, so a search for Alcohol-Acid-Resistant Bacillus was carried out, with a positive result. The patient was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit due to tachycardia and acute respiratory failure. The patient was a smoker with a high tobacco load, chronic kidney disease, in addition to precarious economic, educational and self-care conditions. This report shows that patients with tuberculosis and its complications can be stabilized through known pharmacological treatment. However, the most effective measure to interrupt the transmission of the disease remains the early diagnosis and the provision of adequate treatment, with guidelines aimed at the cessation of harmful habits, such as smoking.