Male with epigastric pain Discussion
Male with epigastric pain Discussion
Chief Compliant: “I’ve been having this abdominal pain, and it just seems like it won’t go away. It started probably a year ago. It used to happen a few times a week, now it hurts every day.”
History of Present Illness: Mr. Rodriguez is a 39-year-old male that recently immigrated to the United States from Dominican Republic. He complains of epigastric pain that began approximately one year ago. He describes the pain as “burning” and occurring daily. He states that the pain sometimes worsens with eating and sometimes it improves. He states that spicy foods make the pain worsen. He admits to weekly NSAID usage and drinking 3-4 alcoholic beverages a week. He quit smoking 6 months ago. He drinks an herbal tea but does not experience any relief or change in the symptoms. He denies any fever, chills, nausea, hematemesis, hematochezia, or melena.
PMH/Medical/Surgical History: No history of gastrointestinal problems in the past. No history of surgery. No known drug allergies.
Medications: Takes ibuprofen “almost daily” for aches and pains associated with working. Drinks herbal tea meant to improve GI symptoms.
Significant Family History: Patient states family history of heart disease. Father had hypertension and his mother had diabetes.
Social History: Patient denies smoking. Patient states that he quit smoking 6 months ago. Patient states that he drinks 3-4 beers weekly. No illicit drugs.
Review of Symptoms:
GENERAL: 39-year-old Spanish speaking patient. Language interpreter present. Patient is alert and oriented. Afebrile. Patient denies recent, unexplained weight loss, fever, chills, weakness or fatigue.
HEENT: Denies headache, change in vision, nose, or ear problems. Denies sore throat.
SKIN: No change in skin, hair or nails.
CARDIOVASCULAR: Regular heart rate and rhythm. S1, S2, no murmurs, rubs, or gallops.
RESPIRATORY: clear to auscultation.
GASTROINTESTINAL: Soft, flat, non-distended. Normoactive bowel sounds heard in four quadrants. Soft, n on-distended, with minimal epigastric tenderness on deep palpation without rebound tenderness or guarding, no hepatosplenomegaly, and no hernia or masses. Male with epigastric pain Discussion
GENITOURINARY: Denies problems with urination.
NEUROLOGICAL: No headache, dizziness, syncope, paralysis, ataxia, numbness or tingling in the extremities. No change in bowel or bladder control.
MUSCULOSKELETAL: Alert & oriented x3. Denies muscle, back pain, joint pain or stiffness.
HEMATOLOGIC: Denies anemia, bleeding or bruising.
LYMPHATICS: No enlarged nodes. Denies history of splenectomy.
PSYCHIATRIC: Denies history of depression or anxiety. Patient does express concern about paying for medications and follow up visits due to lack of insurance.
ENDOCRINOLOGIC: Denies sweating, cold or heat intolerance. Denies polyuria or polydipsia..
Objective Data:
Temperature: 98.5 Fahrenheit
Heart rate: 78 beats/minute, regular
Respiratory rate: 16 breaths/minute
Blood pressure: 133/82 mmHg
Body Mass Index: 24.8 kg/m2- This BMI is within normal range according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (2017).
Physical Assessment Findings: Patient is alert, oriented and is cooperative.
HEENT: PERRLA, no nystagmus noted. Tympanic membranes are intact. External auditory canals are normal. Oral pharynx is normal without erythema or exudate. Tongue and gums are normal.
Lymph Nodes: Non-palpable
Carotids: equal bilaterally 2+
Lungs: clear to auscultation
Heart: Regular rate and rhythm normal S1 and S2.
Abdomen: soft, non-tender, non-distended, no masses.
Genital/Pelvic: unremarkable
Extremities/Pulses: normal pulse bilaterally
Neurologic: A&Ox3, cranial nerves intact
Laboratory and Diagnostic Testing:
Fecal Occult Blood Testing: negative
Heliobacter Pylori (H. pylori) serology test: Positive
CBC with differential to test for other conditions such as anemia or pancreatitis.
Upper GI endoscopy: can help to check for damage to the lining of the stomach and to rule out malignancies (National Institutes of Health [NIH], 2017)
Upper GI Series: Commonly used in the past to diagnose peptic ulcers however this test can miss smaller ulcers and does not allow for direct treatment of the ulcer (American College of Gastroenterology, 2017).
Chest x-ray: This test is not normally used due more effective imaging for GI issues, but could be helpful to rule out other diagnoses such as a hiatal hernia or other abnormal anatomy (Chow, 2015).
Diagnosis:
K27 Peptic Ulcer Disease
K21.9 Gastro-esophageal reflux disease without esophagitis
K29.70 Gastritis, unspecified, without bleeding
Source: ICD10Date.com, 2017.
Differential Diagnosis:
Diverticulitis
Emergent Treatment of Gastroenteritis
Esophageal Rupture and Tears in Emergency Medicine
Esophagitis
Gallstones (Cholelithiasis)
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Viral Hepatitis
Acute Cholangitis
Acute Coronary Syndrome
Acute Gastritis
Cholecystitis
Cholecystitis and Biliary Colic in Emergency Medicine
Chronic Gastritis
Source: Epocrates, 2017.
Plan of Care:
Initially, this patient was started on over the counter antisecretory treatment such as an histamine-2 receptor antagonist or a proton pump inhibitor therapy (PPI) (NIH, 2014). At follow up, patient reported no relief in symptoms and tested positive for H. pylori. He was then treated with standard triple therapy (American Family Physician, 2015). At the next follow up he stated that symptoms resolved during antibiotic triple therapy but returned after finishing the regimen. He was then placed on salvage therapy with included another antibiotic, Levofloxacin, a PPI and amoxicillin for 10 days. At follow up the patient was completely symptom free. The patient was educated regarding possible continuation of PPI therapy to alleviate continuing symptoms. He was counseled to avoid NSAIDS, alcohol, spicy foods, smoking and to avoid lying down after eating (American Academy of Family Physicians [AAFP], 2015)
The patient was counseled and educating using the services of a Spanish speaking interpreter and was given Spanish medication and treatment handouts. He was given instructions to recognize worsening symptoms and when to follow up in office. Male with epigastric pain Discussion
