Decreased Breath Sounds in Surgery — 62yo Man | General Surgery | SMLE Q#1295
SMLE Question #1295
Surgery
General Surgery
Objective: OBJ-TRACH-EMERG-01
Last updated: February 2026
A 62-year-old man is 24 hours after an open right hemicolectomy for colon cancer. He develops sudden worsening shortness of breath and right-sided pleuritic chest pain. He is anxious and tachypneic, with decreased breath sounds and dullness to percussion over the right lower hemithorax. Bedside ultrasound and a chest radiograph show a large right pleural effusion without pneumothorax or mediastinal shift. He is hemodynamically stable. What is the most appropriate immediate management on the ward?
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