Legionella Serositis: A Rare Presentation.

BACKGROUND: Legionella has a higher prevalence in India than in the world. Legionaries' disease most commonly involves the lungs but because of increased awareness, extrapulmonary manifestations are also being diagnosed more frequently. CASE DESCRIPTION: We present a case of a young female with acute onset of fever and chest pain. On initial investigation, an electrocardiogram (ECG) reported widespread pulse rate (PR) depression suggestive of pericarditis which was confirmed by ECG. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) thorax suggested mild bilateral pleural effusion with normal lung parenchyma. elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP) added to the diagnosis of serositis. Serological study for atypical organisms was remarkable for positive immunoglobulin M (IgM) for Legionella. She was treated with a high dose of steroids and azithromycin successfully. CONCLUSION: Isolated extrapulmonary presentation of legionaries disease is often overlooked and is common. So it should be always included in the diagnostic armamentarium as treatment is highly efficacious if started early.

Ultrafiltration in Heart Failure: A Review.

Ultrafiltration is an effective method to get rid of fluid retention and congestion in patients with acute decompensated heart failure (HF) without affecting the circulating volume. Although its efficacy in comparison to diuretics is debatable, the evaluation of our analysis is based on various studies that comprise published clinical trials on ultrafiltration and studies comparing the efficacy of diuretics and ultrafiltration. Apart from this, we also look at literature that provides shortcomings of the said procedure and its scope for future advancements. Heart failure ultimately leads to volume overload, which is a highly concerning complication. Diuretics have been used as a first-line treatment for fluid overload but are becoming inefficacious due to the development of resistance and renal dysfunction. Ultrafiltration, on the other hand, is an attractive alternative to counter volume overload and congestion, which are unresponsive to medical therapy. There is also evidence that it significantly decreases the probability of future episodes of decompensation. There are, however, disagreements about whether ultrafiltration is an effective method to improve mortality in these patients. There is a lack of conclusive studies demonstrating the superiority of one fluid removal method over another. Hence, it is imperative to continue searching for the most effective method to treat congestion. Priority should be given to more mechanistic studies regarding ultrafiltration.