Case 20-2014: A 65-Year-Old Man with Dyspnea and Progressively Worsening Lung Disease

A 65-year-old man with a history of emphysema and inflammatory colitis was admitted to this hospital because of dyspnea, hypoxemia, and progressively worsening lung disease. Chest imaging revealed diffuse ground-glass opacities. Diagnostic tests were performed. Presentation of Case Dr. Gregory K. Robbins: A 65-year-old man with a history of emphysema and inflammatory colitis was admitted to this hospital because of dyspnea, hypoxemia, and worsening lung disease. The patient had been well until approximately 3 years before admission, when herpes zoster infection (shingles) occurred; shortly thereafter, episodes of bloody diarrhea developed, after which a diagnosis of inflammatory colitis was made at another hospital. Two years before admission, mesalamine was administered for treatment of the colitis, with improvement of his symptoms. During the next 2 years, progressive dyspnea on exertion occurred. One year before this admission, pulmonary-function . . .