Reminder of important clinical lesson
The farmer who didnt need a wheel barrow
University Hospital Basel, Department of Internal Medicine, Petersgraben 4, Basel, 4031, Switzerland
Correspondence to:
Willibald Hochholzer, hochholzerw{at}uhbs.ch
We report the difficulties encountered in diagnosing leptospirosis in an 85-year-old man who presented with non-specific signs and symptoms. Initially, a wide haematologic and oncologic work-up without significant results was performed, as symptoms of several organ dysfunctions emerged and the clinical course showed a rapid deterioration. After several days without a definite diagnosis, the infection was finally detected after reviewing all results and considering the patients profession as a farmer. After receiving appropriate antibiotic treatment the patient recovered fully.
Register for free content
The full text of all Editor's Choice articles and summaries of every article are free without registration
The full text of Images in ... articles are free to registered users
Only fellows can access the full text of case reports (apart from Editor's Choice) - become a fellow today, or encourage your institution to, so that together we can grow and develop this resource
Don't forget to sign up for content alerts so you keep up to date with all the case reports as they are published, and let us know what you think by commenting on the Editor's blog
