Abstract
Background
Shoulder pain (SP) may originate from both musculoskeletal and visceral conditions. Physiotherapists (PT) may encounter patients with life-threatening pathologies that mimic musculoskeletal pain such as Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI). A trained PT should be able to distinguish between signs and symptoms of musculoskeletal or visceral origin aimed at performing proper medical referral.
Case presentation
A 46-y-old male with acute SP lasting from a week was diagnosed with right painful musculoskeletal shoulder syndrome, in two successive examinations by the emergency department physicians. However, after having experienced a shift of the pain on the left side, the patient presented to a PT. The PT recognized the signs and symptoms of visceral pain and referred him to the general practitioner, which identified a cardiac disease. The final diagnosis was acute myocardial infarction.
Conclusion
This case report highlights the importance of a thorough patient screening examination, especially for patients treated in an outpatient setting, which allow distinguishing between signs and symptoms of musculoskeletal from visceral diseases.
Acute myocardial infarction and pulmonary tuberculosis in a young female patient: a case report
