Cerebral Air Embolism Following Pigtail Catheter Insertion for Pleural Fluid Drainage

Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases

article

Sa Il Kim¹  Hyun Jung Kwak²  Ji-Yong Moon²  Sang-Heon Kim²  Tae Hyung Kim²  Jang Won Sohn²  Dong Ho Shin²  Sung Soo Park²  Ho Joo Yoon² 

[1] Department of Internal Medicine, Hanmaeum Hospital;Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine

关键词: Embolism;    Air;    Chest Tubes;    Pleural Effusion;   

DOI  :  10.4046/trd.2013.74.6.286

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: The Korean Academy of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases

【 摘 要 】

Pigtail catheter drainage is a common procedure for the treatment of pleural effusion and pneumothorax. The most common complications of pigtail catheter insertion are pneumothorax, hemorrhage and chest pains. Cerebral air embolism is rare, but often fatal. In this paper, we report a case of cerebral air embolism in association with the insertion of a pigtail catheter for the drainage of a pleural effusion. A 67-year-old man is being presented with dyspnea, cough and right-side chest pains and was administered antibiotics for the treatment of pneumonia. The pneumonia failed to resolve and a loculated parapneumonic pleural effusion developed. A pigtail catheter was inserted in order to drain the pleural effusion, which resulted in cerebral air embolism. The patient was administered high-flow oxygen therapy and recovered without any neurologic complications.

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC