A case of acute decompensated CCF with massive bilateral pleural effusion that required prolonged chest tube drainage in a tertiary facility in Nigeria
Department of Internal Medicine, Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara, Nigeria.
Research Article
International Journal of Frontiers in Life Science Research, 2023, 05(01), 009–016.
Article DOI: 10.53294/ijflsr.2023.5.1.0072
Publication history:
Received on 29 May 2023; revised on 09 July 2023; accepted on 12 July 2023
Abstract:
Heart failure with massive bilateral pleural effusion (over 2 liters) is a rare occurrence that is yet to be dispelled due to the dearth of information on the topic. The prevalence and mortality of CCF are rising. Clinical features of heart failure include dyspnea, orthopnea, fatigue, anorexia early satiety, pedal edema, abdominal distension/ascites, anorexia, nausea, elevated jugular venous pressure, displaced apex beat, crepitations, hepatomegaly, jaundice. Pleural effusion may complicate this picture and worsen the clinical state. Pleural effusion in heart failure is usually transudative, with pleural fluid parameters in keeping with the Light criteria. The case is that of a 59-year-old man with acute decompensated congestive cardiac failure 2⁰ to Dilated cardiomyopathy in NYHA class IV precipitated by poor drug adherence, complicated by massive bilateral pleural effusion. He required prolonged chest tube drainage and subsequently had good clinical improvement. This case report serves as a wake-up call that these essentially rare occurrences still exist and that the clinical judgment and expertise of the clinician will be tested on a daily basis.
Keywords:
Acute Decompensated CCF; Massive Bilateral Pleural Effusion; Prolonged Chesttube Drainage; Dilated Cardiomyopathy; Tertiary Facility in Nigeria.
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