A 3-Year-Old Boy With Fever and Drowsiness

Gavin Christian K.W. Koh, MB, BChir, MA, MRCP, DTM&H; Richard J. Maude, BSc, MBChB Hons, MRCP, DTM&H; Pramot Srisamang, MD

Disclosures

July 28, 2017

Editor's Note:
The Case Challenge series includes difficult-to-diagnose conditions, some of which are not frequently encountered by most clinicians but are nonetheless important to accurately recognize. Test your diagnostic and treatment skills using the following patient scenario and corresponding questions. If you have a case that you would like to suggest for a future Case Challenge, please contact us.

Background

A 3-year-old boy presents to the emergency department of a regional hospital in northeast Thailand 4 days after falling into a well. The patient's relatives estimate that he was in the water for no longer than 5 minutes and that he may have aspirated a significant amount of water. He did not lose consciousness and appeared to recover completely within minutes. Three days later, however, the boy developed a fever, cough, and increased drowsiness that prompted his family to bring him to the emergency department.

The child has never been to a hospital before, is normally fit and well, and is on no regular medications. He comes from a family of rice farmers and often plays in the paddy fields near his home. Both parents and siblings are well-appearing, and the family history does not include diabetes, thalassemia, or renal disease.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6

Next Section

Any views expressed above are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of WebMD or Medscape.

Cite this: Gavin Christian K.W. Koh, Richard J. Maude, Pramot Srisamang. A 3-Year-Old Boy With Fever and Drowsiness - Medscape - Jul 28, 2017.

Comments

Commenting is limited to medical professionals. To comment please Log-in.

Comments on Medscape are moderated and should be professional in tone and on topic. You must declare any conflicts of interest related to your comments and responses. Please see our Commenting Guide for further information. We reserve the right to remove posts at our sole discretion.