Hashikawa Ryunosuke, Kuriyama Akira, Terai Takumi, Honda Keigo
Department of Primary Care and Emergency Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, JPN.
Department of Head and Neck Oncology and Innovative Treatment, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, JPN.
Cureus. 2025 Jun 22;17(6):e86563. doi: 10.7759/cureus.86563. eCollection 2025 Jun.
Generalized weakness is a presentation well associated with various underlying medical conditions such as infection and malignancy. However, the association between generalized weakness and hypoxia has rarely been described. A female patient in her late 80s with generalized weakness was admitted to our emergency department. Inspiratory stridor and hypoxia were incidentally recognized, leading to the diagnosis of hypopharyngeal cancer (HPC) with chronic hypoxia. After oxygen supplementation, the generalized weakness completely resolved until the HPC started to occlude the airway. Her unusual presentation could indicate that she did not compensate for her deteriorating hypoxia due to progressive obstruction of her upper airway. This case highlights the importance of a thorough physical examination in diagnosing generalized weakness, empowering physicians to closely evaluate the cause of generalized weakness and recognize it as a potential presentation of chronic hypoxia.
全身无力是一种与多种潜在疾病如感染和恶性肿瘤密切相关的症状表现。然而，全身无力与缺氧之间的关联却鲜有描述。一名80多岁的女性患者因全身无力被收治入我们的急诊科。偶然发现其存在吸气性喘鸣和缺氧，进而诊断为下咽癌（HPC）伴慢性缺氧。补充氧气后，全身无力完全缓解，直至下咽癌开始阻塞气道。她这种不寻常的表现可能表明，由于上呼吸道逐渐阻塞，她并未对不断恶化的缺氧状况进行代偿。该病例凸显了全面体格检查在诊断全身无力方面的重要性，使医生能够密切评估全身无力的病因，并将其视为慢性缺氧的一种潜在表现。
