A case of long-term misdiagnosis of severe reflux asthma

  Brief medical history: Patient Liu Moumou, male, 35 years old, from Linxian County, Shanxi. He was admitted to the hospital with “episodic wheezing with cough and sputum for 3 years; acid reflux and heartburn for 2 years”. The patient had sneezing, nasal itching, runny nose and nasal congestion with no obvious cause 3 years ago. When the nasal congestion was severe, he opened his mouth to breathe, and often cleared his throat because of the repeated coughing caused by the flow of nasal mucus to the nasopharynx. I took “cold medicine” on my own and it did not work. He was diagnosed as having “allergic rhinitis” at the local hospital, and allergen tests showed that he was allergic to pollen and peanut oil, so he was treated with anti-allergy medication. The “allergic symptoms” were not relieved, and the patient gradually developed episodes of wheezing with coughing and coughing up white syrupy sputum. He could not lie down at night and was forced to take a sitting position to get some relief, which seriously affected his sleep at night. He was diagnosed as “bronchial asthma” at Changzhi Peace Hospital in Shanxi Province, and was treated with anti-inflammatory and asthma treatment to no avail. He was transferred to Peking Union Medical College Hospital and Peking Medical College Hospital, where he underwent pulmonary function tests and the results supported the diagnosis of “bronchial asthma”. The doctor told the patient that all the first-line medications for asthma treatment had been used and that there were no more effective medications available. The patient insisted on taking the medication, but her symptoms did not improve. After three months of insisting on taking the medication, he was hospitalized in Beijing Tiantan Hospital due to brain hemorrhage caused by the excessive amount of hormones contained in the medication stimulating the cerebral blood vessels. By now, the patient’s symptoms of episodic wheezing and coughing had not been relieved in the slightest, and the episodes were still frequent at night, with severe sitting and breathing with profuse sweating, and he could only rely on Ventolin and other drugs to relieve his symptoms. Two years ago, the patient had a sudden attack of shortness of breath with loss of consciousness during activity and was rushed to the hospital for rescue. Since then, the symptoms have been more frequent, with no obvious regularity, and in severe cases, cyanosis, coma, incontinence, etc., which must be relieved by manual ventilation, and have been resuscitated seven times so far. So much so that the operators of the emergency center have long been familiar with the voice of the patient’s family, as soon as they hear the voice they know that it is Liu Moumou who needs to be resuscitated, and sometimes they are even afraid to answer the phone. Sometimes in the local hospital for resuscitation, the doctor will take the initiative to advise the patient’s family to hurry up and transfer to the hospital, saying that they have never seen this N serious “asthma” patients. Each time the hospital issued a critical care notice, each resuscitation was a life-and-death test for the patient’s family; one blow after another plunged the patient and family into deep despair. During this period, the patient again occasionally developed gastrointestinal symptoms such as acid reflux and heartburn after meals, accompanied by obvious symptoms of chest pain, which could be slightly improved by self-administration of omeprazole. Later, the symptoms worsened and caused reflux and vomiting after eating and drinking, for which the patient did not dare to eat and drink. However, it is still difficult to sleep flat at night due to wheezing, coughing and burning pain in the chest. Weakened patients even thought of giving up treatment and taking care of themselves. It was not until the patient and his family learned about the concept of reflux asthma from the media that he was admitted to our hospital for treatment this month with a last ray of hope.  After admission, the patient actively improved the relevant tests. The arterial blood pH was 7.509, and the total blood leukocyte count was 10.13*109/L. High-resolution esophageal manometry showed a basal LES pressure of 12.3 mmHg and an esophageal power analysis failure rate of 22%, suggesting a lower-than-normal LES pressure and poor coordination of the esophageal body. Gastroscopy showed longitudinal erosions visible in the dentate line and cardia, and the cardia opening was flaccid, suggesting reflux esophagitis LA-A, cardia mucosal tear, and chronic superficial gastritis. Upper gastrointestinal imaging suggested esophageal reflux and gastritis. Chest X-ray showed thickened and disturbed texture in both lungs, suggesting bronchitis manifestations. The patient was considered to have respiratory symptoms related to gastroesophageal reflux and was treated with surgical anti-reflux therapy. Laparoscopic fundoplication + esophageal fissure repair was performed under general anesthesia on the 17th of this month. Three days after the operation, the patient’s reflux symptoms disappeared; sneezing, nasal itching, runny nose, nasal congestion and wheezing symptoms disappeared, and cough and sputum symptoms were significantly relieved. The patient and his family could not help but exclaim that it was like a rebirth.