Steinmann D, Priebe H-J, Guttmann J
Anästhesiologische Universitätsklinik Freiburg, Hugstetter Strasse 55, 79106, Freiburg.
Anaesthesist. 2008 Mar;57(3):251-4. doi: 10.1007/s00101-008-1310-5.
Acute occlusion of an endotracheal tube (ETT) is a feared, potentially life-threatening complication of mechanical ventilation. In the presence of a thoracic trauma, a blood clot needs to be taken into consideration as the cause of airway obstruction. This report describes a case of sudden ventilation failure due to acute ETT obstruction by a blood clot caused by intrapulmonary haemorrhaging in a child following multiple trauma accompanied by blunt thoracic trauma in the absence of dyspnoe or haemoptysis.
