How long would it have taken to build up pus in the pleural Posted: 03-23-06 18:20pm
This child died of an Empyema of the
pleural cavity, also had necrotic tonsils
and strep A present in the blood. 18 hrs.
earlier we had taken her to casualty,
whereupon her breathing had been laboured
causing oxygen to be administered, the
breathing improved . Doctor looked in her
mouth and was amazed by size of tonsils.
We wre out of the hospital whithin 30mins.
erith a bottle of anti biotic (wide spec.
Aug).
The day before we went to casualty we had
taken the child to GP who had given her a
thorough check including her throat,
saying it was only very slightly inflammed
and did'nt need antibiotics.
How long would pus have taken to build up
in the pleural cavity?
Even though the GP listened to her chest
with a stethoscope (and tapped) she didn't
hear anything unusual.
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DoctorAnswer
Doctor Answer
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Ear, Nose & Throat Disorders Answer A694 Posted: 04-07-06 14:17pm
Please receive my deep sympathy for the
death of your child. Empiema (pus in
pleural cavity) is life threatening
condition, especially in small kids.
Empiema usually occurs as a complication
of preexisting lung infection (pneumonia),
but it can also occur as part of a
generalized blood infection (sepsis). An
X-ray image of the chest is the main
diagnostic tool for detecting empiema.
Auscultation with a stethoscope and
percussion (tapping) are not always
reliable for diagnosing pleural empiema.
Infection spreading in small kids with
weakened immunity is very fast. My opinion
is that a chest X-ray had to be done at
first when doctors gave oxygen to your
child. The doctors could have kept it to
refer to after further blood analyses. You
need an expert opinion from a pathologist
or forensic medical expert in order
determine if there was any medical/doctor
liability.
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