Physiotherapy to Alleviate Chest Complications in Acute Pancreatitis With Comorbidities: A Rare Case of Young Female

TL;DR

A young woman with multiple severe health issues, including acute pancreatitis and pleural effusion, showed improvement through physiotherapy treatment.

Contribution

This paper presents a rare case of a young female with multiple comorbidities and demonstrates the effectiveness of physiotherapy in improving her condition.

Findings

Physiotherapy improved radiological results and spirometric parameters in the patient.

The patient's hospital stay was reduced with the addition of physiotherapy to standard care.

The case highlights the potential of physiotherapy in managing complex, multi-system conditions.

Abstract

An abnormal buildup of pleural fluid, known as a pleural effusion, results from an imbalance between excessive formation and absorption. Despite the wide range of pleural effusion causes, including pneumonia, congestive heart failure, and cancer, the majority of cases are attributed to pleural fluid buildup. Acute pancreatitis also leads to complications such as systemic inflammatory response syndrome. A complex pathophysiologic reaction to a range of wounds, including trauma and infections, burns, and pancreatitis, is known as systemic inflammatory response syndrome. It was recognized that a variety of injuries exhibited a similar inflammatory response, making them prime candidates for new anti-inflammatory molecules designed to stop the spread of inflammation or provide targeted therapy. Localized inflammation, a protective response that the body regulates at the site of the injury, can, if lost or overly activated, result in a heightened systemic response known as systemic inflammatory response syndrome. The patient is a 19-year-old female who arrived at Acharya Vinoba Bhave Rural Hospital with complaints of abdominal pain for eight days, abdominal distension for three to four days, breathing difficulty for three to four days, and fever. According to the patient's condition, she was unable to perform normal activities of daily living for eight days. She had breathlessness for eight days, which worsened four days ago. She was diagnosed with pleural effusion, acute pancreatitis, and systemic inflammatory response syndrome. This case is unique as the patient is very young and she has multiple health issues such as severe pancreatitis, ischemic heart disease, systemic inflammatory response syndrome, pulmonary consolidation, and pleural effusion at the same time which makes this condition critical. This study aimed to identify the improvement in this patient after getting physiotherapy treatment. Physiotherapy treatment included lifestyle modifications to reduce weight, performing exercise on a daily basis, breathing exercises airway clearance technique, volumetric incentive spirometer segmental expansion, inspiratory muscle training, chest mobilization, chest proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF), and graded mobilization to improve patient condition. When added to standard care, a physiotherapy program improves radiological results, spirometric parameters, and hospital stays in pleural effusion patients.

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