AH Al-Jam'a, AM Elbashier, SS Al-Faris, Brucella Pneumonia: A Case Report. 1993; 13(1): 74-77 Brucellosis is a classical zoonosis caused by a gram-negative bacillus of the genus Brucella. It is endemic in Saudi Arabia [1], and considered to be a major health problem in this country [2,3]. Human brucellosis can either be acute or chronic, and presents with a variety of manifestations. The majority of patients present with pyrexia and musculoskeletal involvement [1][2][3][4]. This disease may also be complicated by the involvement of various systems in the body including cardiovascular, central nervous and genitourinary systems [5,6].Pulmonary brucellosis, on the other hand, is a rare complication [5,7]. A number of cases were reported in 1983 in a study of a spectrum of pneumonia found in Riyadh [8] indicating no details on the clinical picture or response to therapy. Brucellar pulmonary involvement has been reported in Kuwait [7,9,10]. We report a case of brucellar pneumonia with positive sputum culture. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case to be reported from the Middle East with positive sputum for brucellosis.
Case ReportA 75-year-old retired Saudi male was admitted with a two-week history of cough, productive of yellowish sputum and difficulty in breathing. The patient was known to have had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for ten years and hypertension of one year's duration. The patient has been a chronic smoker for more than 30 years. He used to go to the Outpatient Department (OPD) for follow-up for his chest problem. A few months prior to admission he experienced shortness of breath on exertion. This illness was preceded by rhinorrhea of one day's duration when he started to have fever, productive cough and shortness of breath at rest. The patient presented with no history of raw milk ingestion or contact with domestic animals. Examination revealed a patient in moderate respiratory distress but not cyanotic. His temperature was 37.5°C, pulse was 112/min and regular, respiratory rate was 40/min and his blood pressure was 140/90 Torr. The neck was supple with no cervical lymphadenopathy and no lymph node enlargement was noted. Respiratory system examination revealed a symmetrical movement of the chest with intercostal retractions and increased anteroposterior diameter; tactile vocal fremitus was increased in the right infra-axillary area; breath sounds were vesicular with scattered rhonchi and crepitations which were more prominent and coarser at the right base. Cardiovascular system examination was normal apart from tachycardia. Abdominal examination showed no organomegaly. Musculoskeletal system showed no peripheral or axial skeletal involvement.Investigations revealed WBC-9.6 × 10 9 /L, Hb -12.7 gm/dl, platelet -443 × 10 9 /L, Na+ -120 mmol/L and K+ -4.1 mmol/L. His chest radiograph revealed a peripheral infiltrate at the right lower zone with bilateral lung hyperinflation (Figure 1). The blood culture was sterile following seven days of incubation, while the sputum cult...