TY - JOUR T1 - A clinical, radiological and microbiological profile of lung abscess JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J VL - 40 IS - Suppl 56 SP - P2496 AU - Maria Malik AU - Shaista Ghazal AU - Ashok Kumara AU - Nadeem Rizvi Y1 - 2012/09/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P2496.abstract N2 - IntroductionLung abscesses continue to be a frequent presentation for physicians in Pakistan.With little local data available on the clinical correlations of the disease,there is a pressing need to describe the various factors associated with the condition.ObjectivesTo evaluate the clinical,radiological and microbiological profile of lung abscess.MethodsA retrospective case study was done through studying hospital records of 41 patients admitted with lung abscess at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi,Pakistan.Demographical data,clinical symptoms,risk factor assessment,radiological findings and culture reports were studied to outline a relevant profile.ResultsOver half the cases comprised of adult,male patients.Clinically,90.2% presented with productive cough,followed by 82.9% with fever, and 58.5% with haemoptysis.A significant association of 65.9%was found with smoking.Among other risk factors, poor oral hygiene was found in 56.1% of the cases, diabetes mellitus in 43.9%, pneumonia in 22%, and malignancy was diagnosed in 4.9%. Radiographically, 56.1% showed bilateral and 51.2% had right lower lung zone involvement. Sputum Gram staining revealed Gram negative rods and Gram positive cocci in 36.6% of the cases. AFB smear was positive in 22%. Sputum cultures showed Pseudomonas aeruginosa was present in 29.3%. No growth on blood cultures was seen in 86.6% and only 9.8% exhibited growth of E. coli.ConclusionLung abscess was found to be more common in adult men,and was significantly related to smoking.The other common risk factor was found to be poor oral hygiene,while the right lower lung zone was the main site of abscess formation.Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the major pathogen implicated on sputum cultures. ER -