Search

Clinical severity of scrub typhus ranges from mild to fatal. Acute pancreatitis with abscess formation is a rare complication among patients with scrub typhus. This paper reports a case of scrub typhus in a 75 years old man with acute pancreatitis with abscess formation and multiorgan failure. Abdominal computed tomography showed multiple infected pancreatic pseudocysts with peri-pancreatic infiltration. Multiorgan failure was successfully treated with doxycycline, ceftriaxone, and supportive management. The pancreatic abscess was successfully drained percutaneously and the sizes of pseudocysts decreased remarkably.

Small cell lung cancer is characterized by an aggressive clinical course and a high tendency for early dissemination in spite of a good chemotherapy response. Topotecan is a topoisomerase I inhibitor, and it is used as second-line treatment for small cell lung cancer. The reported dose-limiting adverse reactions to topotecan are mainly hematologic. Yet pulmonary toxicity associated with topotecan is known to be rare. We report here on a case that showed the development of acute respiratory distress syndrome during the 3rd cycle of topotecan chemotherapy in a patient with small cell lung cancer. He developed dyspnea and respiratory failure, and the chest CT scan revealed diffuse ground-glass opacity that was probably due to chemotherapy-related pulmonary toxicity. He finally died of acute respiratory distress syndrome. (Tuberc Respir Dis 2008;65:142-146)Key Words: Small cell carcinoma, Topotecan, Acute respiratory distress syndrome