Scenario: 

• A 49-year-old patient with rheumatoid arthritis comes into the clinic with a chief complaint of a fever.
• Patient’s current medications include atorvastatin 40 mg at night, methotrexate 10 mg po every Friday morning and prednisone 5 mg po qam.
• He states that he has had a fever up to 101 degrees F for about a week and admits to chills and sweats.
• He says he has had more fatigue than usual and reports some chest pain associated with coughing.
• He admits to having occasional episodes of hemoptysis.
• He works as a grain inspector at a large farm cooperative.
• After extensive work-up, the patient was diagnosed with Invasive aspergillosis.

The Assignment

(1- to 2-page case study analysis-this does not include title page and reference page)

Develop a 1- to 2-page case study analysis in which you:

• Explain why you think the patient presented the symptoms described. (Not a trick question but reflective of a patient on immunosuppressive drugs and a high-risk employment for exposure to Aspergillosis)
• Identify the genes that may be associated with the development of the disease.
• Explain the process of immunosuppression and the effect it has on body systems.

Developing answers to these 3 questions, each question 1-2 paragraphs will bring you to the 2-page expected limit. 3 pages will not lose points but learning to synthesize points, provide current references (submissions like this would earn 3 primary references) and citations will garner full credit.

Reminder: Include a title page, introduction, summary, and references, done in APA format. Keep references current, 5 yr. from publication please and from primary references (# references to support your points for full credit) like classroom textbook, peer-reviewed journals.