Chest
Selected ReportsHypersensitivity Pneumonitis Secondary to Klebsiella oxytoca: A New Cause of Humidifier Lung
Section snippets
Case Report
A 30-year-old previously healthy woman was evaluated for recurrent episodes of dry cough, dyspnea, and fever. Approximately eight weeks prior to evaluation, the patient's 2-year-old son developed cough and coryza requiring symptomatic treatment with acetaminophen and a room humidifier. Over the next month, the patient was hospitalized on three occasions with fever, dyspnea, and nonproductive cough.
At the time of the initial hospital admission, there was radiographic evidence of bilateral
Discussion
This case represents the first documented report of HP potentially occurring from a common water-borne organism, K oxytoca, that had contaminated a home humidifier. The diagnosis, we believe, is confirmed by the classic history and rapid clinical and radiologic improvement following removal from the antigen, and the detection of serum-binding antibodies at significant titer to this organism isolated from the humidifier fluid. Although reproduction of symptoms by inhalation challenge would be
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors wish to thank Ms. Nancy Axtman for her assistance in preparation of this manuscript.
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