Clinical reviews
Common cases in cardiology: shortness of breath
This article describes the approach to the ward round in our first patient, Mr Hathaway, who has shortness of breath
- By: Lucie Weatherall, Rakesh Patel
You are the medical student placed on the cardiology ward at a busy district general hospital. All the patients on the ward have suspected cardiology problems. They have various secondary and coexisting comorbid conditions affecting their health and wellbeing. The patients vary from 19 to 89 years in age, which demonstrates how cardiac disease can affect both young and older people. The medical team consists of Dr Jones, consultant cardiologist, Dr Sender, the specialty level doctor, and Dr Farah, the core medical training doctor. There are four patients in bay 1 of the ward, and we are about to see them.
You have 10 minutes to step into the shoes of a junior doctor, read through the patients’ notes, and identify the salient features before the consultant reviews the case on the ward round. Your goal is to formulate an accurate picture of the presenting case from these important features