Paraffin Oil Pneumonitis During Pregnancy: A Case Report

Author(s): Moles Athanasios, Fotopoulos Stavros, Cheirakis Emmanouil, Koronaios Vasilios, Kalousis Evangelos, Lintzeri Dimitra, Lazarescu Daria, Grigorakos Leonidas

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a rare occurrence in pregnant patients and, when it occurs, it usually raises diagnostic dilemmas as it is attributed to many causes. We present the case of a 32-year-old G1P0 woman at 31 weeks of gestation who was hospitalized because of bleeding per vagina and symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) with episodes of vomiting. Within 72 hours from her admission, she developed dyspnea, cough and hypoxemia and was transferred to our intensive care unit (ICU). She was diagnosed with paraffin oil pneumonitis, treated accordingly and discharged in good health. We highlight medical personnel should keep high suspicion for paraffin oil pneumonitis in pregnant patients with features of GERD who develop ARDS after treatment with liquid paraffin.