Pearl of the Month

Abdominal pain with high transaminases


 

A 54-year-old woman presents with severe abdominal pain lasting 3 hours. The pain came on suddenly and was 10/10 in severity. It was in her right upper quadrant radiating to her back. She has had a 50-pound weight loss in the past year. Her medications include sertraline, phentermine-topiramate, and simvastatin.

She is evaluated in the emergency department, and labs show the following: aspartate aminotransferase, 450; alanine aminotransferase, 500; alkaline phosphatase, 100; bilirubin, 1.2. She receives morphine for her pain with minimal relief. An ultrasound shows no gallstones and no dilated common bile duct (CBD).

Her pain resolves 3 hours after arriving in the ED. Repeat labs 15 minutes after pain resolution show the following: AST, 900; ALT, 1,000; alk phos, 130; bili, 1.2.

What is the most likely diagnosis?

A. Acetaminophen toxicity.

B. Hepatitis A.

C. Ischemic hepatitis.

D. Simvastatin.

E. Passage of gallstone.

Pages

Recommended Reading

VIDEO: No short-term link found between PPIs, myocardial infarction
MDedge Family Medicine
Ulcerative colitis is disabling over time
MDedge Family Medicine
Bloating. Flatulence. Think SIBO
MDedge Family Medicine
Strategies to reduce colorectal surgery complications
MDedge Family Medicine
Heart attacks soar in young IBD patients
MDedge Family Medicine
Buy the IBD, get the comorbidity for free
MDedge Family Medicine
Xeljanz: FDA panel recommends ulcerative colitis indication
MDedge Family Medicine
New study establishes IBD severity index
MDedge Family Medicine
MDedge Daily News: Why the barber’s chair can help hypertension
MDedge Family Medicine
Do not miss cannabis use in gastroparesis patients
MDedge Family Medicine