A confirmed severe case of human infection with avian-origin influenza H7N9: A case report

Abstract

A male patient, aged 77 years, was admitted to hospital with the chief complaint of persistent hyperpyrexia that had presented for four days. The patient also suffered from hypoxemia, and a large white shadow in the left lung was observed on a chest radiograph, indicating inflammation. No therapeutic effect was observed with anti‑infection treatment. The patient admitted a history of direct contact with live chickens two weeks prior to hospital admission. The day after admission to the Jingnan District Centre Hospital of Shanghai (Shanghai, China), the patient was diagnosed with severe H7N9 avian influenza infection by nasopharyngeal swab and blood sampling detection. Although the patient received anti‑infective drugs, intubated assisted ventilation and circulation support, the condition of the patient continued to rapidly deteriorate. Oxygen saturation decreased and gastrointestinal bleeding occurred, with the body temperature fluctuating between 39 and 40˚C. By day 6 after admission, the patient presented with circulatory failure, with liver and renal failure. On day 7, the blood pressure of the patient was unable to be measured, and the patient was diagnosed with multiple organ dysfunction. Subsequently, clinical death was declared with the patient exhibiting asystole and no spontaneous breathing.