Case Reports
Vol. 15 No. 1 (2021)
Massive pulmonary embolism masked as an episode of acute agitation in a psychiatric patient: a case report
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All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
Received: 30 October 2020
Accepted: 24 November 2020
Accepted: 24 November 2020
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Management of the psychiatric diseases' reacutization is a frequent occurrence in emergency medicine. During this coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, a further increase in access to the emergency room was reported, and the reasons are numerous. Although the essential prerogative of the emergency department is to provide immediate clinical assistance by rapidly setting an effective diagnostic and therapeutic path, there are multiple obstacles to providing adequate care for Emergency Department patients with mental illness. In this report, we describe the case of a 65-year-old female patient with severe schizophrenia who was evaluated in the emergency room for acute agitation masking subtle, persistent dyspnea. The possibility of an underlying medical cause should not be underestimated or completely forgotten due to the difficult approach to the psychiatric patient.
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How to Cite
Massive pulmonary embolism masked as an episode of acute agitation in a psychiatric patient: a case report. (2020). Italian Journal of Medicine, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.4081/itjm.2020.1414