Electronic Vaping-Induced Methicillin-Sensitive Pneumonia and Empyema.

Pneumonia is a severe acute inflammation of the lower respiratory tract due to infectious pathogens. Pathogens responsible include bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. Pneumonia categorizations include community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), hospital-acquired pneumonia, and ventilator-associated pneumonia.

Postpartum-Isolated Native Pulmonic Valve Methicillin-Resistant Infective Endocarditis Complicated by Pelvic Abscess, Clavicle Osteomyelitis, and Polyarticular Septic Arthritis.

Isolated native pulmonic valve infective endocarditis (IE) is a rare occurrence. The most commonly involved valves in injection drug users are the tricuspid valve followed by mitral and then aortic valves. Most reported cases of methicillin-resistant (MRSA) IE involve multiple valves.

Cytomegalovirus pneumonitis-induced secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and SIADH in an immunocompetent elderly male literature review.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is also known as hemophagocytic syndrome. It is a lethal hematologic condition due to a dysregulated immune response which results in inappropriately activated macrophages damaging host tissues. Based on the etiology, HLH can be primary (genetic) or secondary (acquired).

Increased Incidence, Morbidity, and Mortality in Human Coronavirus NL63 Associated with ACE Inhibitor Therapy and Implication in SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).

Background: The endemic human coronavirus NL63 strain (HCoV-NL63) employs angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptors on cell surfaces to infect hosts in the same manner as SARS-CoV and the novel SARS-CoV-2. It has been proposed that patients on angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACE-I) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) therapy infected with SARS-CoV-2 have a higher mortality rate due to over-expression of ACE-2 receptors.

Aim: We sought to evaluate the impact of ACE-I/ARB on infectivity of various endemic coronavirus strains, hypothesizing that rates of ACE-I use among patients with HCoV-NL63 would be higher compared to other endemic coronavirus strains that do not utilize the ACE-2 receptor.

A Pregnant Woman Presenting With Progressively Worsening Dyspnea and Pneumothorax.

A 29-year-old Ukrainian woman presented to the obstetric clinic at 28 weeks' gestation with pregnancy complicated by intrauterine growth restriction. She reported progressively worsening dyspnea during her pregnancy and was found to have significant hypoxia with an oxygen saturation of 84% on room air prompting admission for further evaluation. Oxygen saturation improved to 92% on 10 L of supplemental oxygen.

Ehrlichiosis Presenting as Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis in an Immunocompetent Adult.

Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a fatal, immunologic syndrome characterized by dysregulated tissue inflammation. HLH can be either primary or secondary; with the latter typically resulting from an infection. Diagnosis requires five or more of the following: fever, splenomegaly, cytopenia, hypertriglyceridemia, hemophagocytosis via biopsy, low natural killer (NK) cell activity, elevated ferritin and soluble CD25 level (sCD25).

Understanding the Knowledge Gap and Assessing Comfort Level among Healthcare Professionals Who Provide Inhaler Education.

Inhaled medications play a pivotal role in the management of COPD and asthma. Provider knowledge and ability to teach various devices is paramount as poor inhaler technique directly correlates with worse disease control. The goal of our survey was to assess the knowledge and comfort level with various inhaled devices among providers involved in patient inhaler education.