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Case Reports: Unusual association of diseases/symptoms
Purpura fulminans in a hyposplenic patient arising from pneumococcal sinusitis
  1. Zi Yi Tew1,
  2. Daniel Johnson2,
  3. Gerard Louis3 and
  4. Kaushik Bhowmick1
  1. 1 Department of Anaesthesia, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, Bury Saint Edmunds, UK
  2. 2 Department of General Medicine, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, Bury Saint Edmunds, UK
  3. 3 Department of Emergency Medicine, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Zi Yi Tew, Department of Anaesthesia, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, Bury Saint Edmunds, UK; ztew{at}nhs.net

Abstract

We report a previously healthy woman in her 50s who presented with sepsis, rapidly progressive purpuric rash and disseminated intravascular coagulation. She was diagnosed with acute infective purpura fulminans due to invasive pneumococcal infection likely secondary to sinusitis. Our case report discusses our initial diagnostic uncertainty and approach in investigating and treating such a critically unwell patient.

  • adult intensive care
  • haematology (incl blood transfusion)

https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2022-253043

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors ZYT and DJ contributed equally in the conception, drafting, data acquisition, editing and review of the manuscript. GL contributed in the conception, data acquisition, editing and review of the manuscript. KB was involved in the editing and final review of the manuscript.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Case reports provide a valuable learning resource for the scientific community and can indicate areas of interest for future research. They should not be used in isolation to guide treatment choices or public health policy.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.