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Jan 3, 2019 20 tweets 32 min read Read on X
Happy New Years everyone! Time for a new #TwitterReport!

We give you a case. You ask us questions. Everyone learns.

Case—
A 65yoM with HTN, CAD s/p stenting 7y ago presents with hemoptysis. He’s been filling a coffee mug up with blood q24h.

What else do you want to know?
1/x #TwitterReport

HPI: Over last four months, patient reports
-night sweats,
-worsening non-productive cough, and a
-20 pound weight loss.

-Hemoptysis started two months ago as rusty sputum and he now coughs up enough bright blood to fill a coffee mug.
2/x #TwitterReport

HPI cont:
no time in jail. No homelessness. No time overseas.

Rare nosebleeds. Nothing new.

Social hx:
-no alcohol
-80 pack year smoking hx
-worked as a welder

Meds: metoprolol, ASA, atorvastatin, tamsulosin

PMH:
HTN
CAD s/p stents
BPH
3/x #TwitterReport

VS: BP 140/80, HR 65, SpO2 95% room air
Comfortable appearing
Pulm: rhonchi in LLL
HEENT: no blood easily seen

WBC 12, no left shift
Hb 13 from 15 2 years ago
Plt 350

BMP is normal including BUN:Cr
4/x #TwitterReport

Chest x-ray is shown.

What do you want to do? Can I get a summary statement, please? What do you think is going on? Image
5/x #TwitterReport

Great discussion folks!

Our summary: 65yoM with chronic constitutional symptoms incl unintentional weight loss and an 80ppy smoking history p/w a cavitary lung lesion, TB risk factors and testing neg.

CT Chest- LLL cavity, mediastinal LAD, LUL 2cm nodule
6/x #TwitterReport

Other results:
ENT scope— no epistaxis
Bronch- minor LLL blood, no pus

Sputum + BAL GS/culture— no bugs
AFB sputum/Cx x3— no AFB
All fungal serologies— neg
HIV— neg
ANCA—neg
ANA— neg
RF— neg
7/x #TwitterReport

Tests for cancer:
BAL cytology— neg for malignancy
Brushings— neg
FNA— neg

What now? What’s high on your differential? What’s lower? If cancer was your #1 diagnosis, what’s your #1 diagnosis now?

@CPSolvers @ImproveDX
8/x #TwitterReport

Sorry for the late conclusion, but here it is!

So as many of you said (@laxswamy @sbelok01 @williammflowers), this patient gets more biopsies

1) CT guided-FNA --> negative for cancer
2) Finally goes for EBUS --> positive for squamous cell lung cancer
9/x #TwitterReport

Final diagnosis: Locally metastatic lung cancer, squamous histology

...

"Wait, what?" many of you are probably saying. "He got FOUR negative samples before a cancer diagnosis was established! How does that work?"

To explain, let's talk test characteristics!
10/x #TwitterReport

What was your pretest probability of Lung Ca. in this patient (with an 80ppy smoking history, weight loss, hemoptysis, cavitary lung nodules)?

Probably really high, right? 90% sound reasonable?

***In every case, consider how likely you think the dx is!**
11/x #TwitterReport

Now: How good are all these tests for detecting lung malignancy?
-Specificity: ~100% (you can't fake cancer... usually)
-Sensitivity: not great

The result is a negative likelihood ratio that is >0.2 for all tests. Not Great at ruling out malignancy! ImageImage
12/x #TwitterReport

If your pretest probability is high enough, even multiple negative tests won't move your post-test probability that further down!

That's why the 2013 Chest Guidelines recommend that you keep looking for cancer if your suspicion is high enough! ImageImage
13/13 #TwitterReport

Final note: All those serologies you want to order are probably useless....

Except for the ANCA. The ANCA has a great positive predictive value even in the absence of other symptoms.

So in the end, it just all comes back to the history!

Questions? Image

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More from @MedEdPGH

Oct 16, 2020
1/ It’s time for #PhysioQuizzo! You’re excited. We’re excited. It’s fun!

You’re on inpatient cardiology and your patient gets a right heart cath (RHC):

RA 29
PA 52/33 (mean 40)
PCWP 34
CO/CI
-Thermo: 2.9/1.2
-Fick: 5.3/2.0
SvO2 43

Q1: Does this pt have heart failure (HF)?
2/ #PhysioQuizzo

Question 2 (all answers at the end!): Does the patient have pulmonary hypertension?
3/ #PhysioQuizzo

Question 3: Does the patient have pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH, or Group 1 PH)?
Read 18 tweets
Jul 15, 2020
1/ Clinical Reasoning Series – Cognitive Bias

Ever felt the thrill of making crucial diagnosis? The pain of missing a diagnosis? Yeah, us too

Clinical reasoning is hard, so let’s talk about it. Our 1st post in a new series starts today. Let’s talk about Biases.

#MedTwitter
2/ Basic Definitions:

>Heuristic: a cognitive shortcut based on prior experience & pattern recognition

>Cognitive Bias: when a heuristic leads to misdiagnosis or inappropriate treatment

We need heuristics b/c reasoning every decision from 1st principles would take forever!
3/ Heuristic vs Bias

There is a fine line b/t a heuristic and a bias

For example: 80yoM w/ CAD p/w SOB, ankle edema, and alveolar filling on CXR. You start abx PNA
👍If he improves, PNA was a good call
👎If he gets worse because he has ♥️ failure, PNA was “premature closure”
Read 10 tweets
Nov 8, 2019
It's time for #TwitterReport! This time, we're making a #tweetorial on how to use tweetorials for case-based teaching.

Follow along to our Mid-Atlantic @SocietyGIM workshop in Ballroom B from 12:45-1:45 pm at the @PittTweet University Club on 11/15/19.

Let's get started!
@SocietyGIM @PittTweet 1/ What even is a #tweetorial?

A Tweetorial is a short thread of tweets which provides educator-driven content centered around a chosen topic.

Tweetorials leverage the multimedia capabilities of Twitter to dissect a topic using supporting articles, videos, diagrams, and polls.
Read 14 tweets
Jun 19, 2019
It's time for #TwitterReport! Get out your illness scripts and problem representations.

Case: A 65yoM with metastatic melanoma goes to the ER with RLE edema: doppler shows a femoral DVT. He also says he's been getting more tired over the last 4wk.

What else do you want to know?
PMH: HTN, HL, T2DM (now diet controlled), metastatic melanoma
PSH: none
Meds: HCTZ, metoprolol, atorvastatin, pembrolizumab/ipilimumab (last cycle 2 weeks ago)
Social: lives with wife and dog at home. From a local rural area. Never smoker/alcohol. Former construction worker.
ER Triage Vitals:
-Temp 37*C
-HR 60
-BP 90/54
-RR 12
-SpO2 98% on room air

What else do you want to know?
Read 17 tweets
May 15, 2019
It’s time for #PhysioQuizzo! And today, we got a really trippy puzzle for you. [thread]

1/x You’re still working in the ICU (1 week to go!), and you take care of a pt who overdosed. He was revived in the ER. Urine was obtained before naloxone was given.

Quiz on post 3/x.
2/x His UDS is shown below. His outpatient med list is also shown.

You’ll note his UDS is positive for everything...
3/x

Here’s the Quiz:
—Which of the following is the least he could have plausibly taken given his UDS? (Assume he’s taken all his home meds that day)

A. Each and every drug on the UDS
B. Home meds, ethanol
C. Home meds, EtOH, oxycodone, valium
D. Home meds, cocaine, oxy, heroin
Read 7 tweets
May 1, 2019
Get your thinking caps out! It’s time for #PhysioQuizzo!

You’re still working in the ICU. You get 2 patients back to back, comatose. Little history. Vented.

Patient 1: 22yo female. Found down at home. We don’t know her PMH or meds.
How many acid base disorders does she have? Use the poll below

What do you think she has? Say your opinion in the comments!
Patient #2: 25yo male. Past medical history not known.
Read 11 tweets

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