Department of Emergency Medicine, Myongji Hospital, Goyang, Gyeonggi, South Korea.
Department of Emergency Medicine, Myongi Hospital, Goyang, Gyeonggi, South Korea.
Am J Case Rep. 2023 Mar 28;24:e939304. doi: 10.12659/AJCR.939304.
BACKGROUND A venous air embolism is a rare condition but could have a disastrous effect on vital organs. It usually occurs due to iatrogenic sources, such as central venous catheter insertion, neurosurgery, and other invasive procedures. In most cases, hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is the best treatment for those conditions. However, multiple venous air emboli after hyperbaric oxygen therapy has not been reported in the literature. CASE REPORT An 82-yr-old woman came to the Emergency Department after inhalation of fumes at the scene of a house fire. She had dizziness and nausea. Her vital signs were normal at the time of presentation. She received HBOT for carbon monoxide poisoning. Soon after the HBOT, the patient started to have dizziness, abdominal pain, and leg pains. Computed tomography scans showed multiple systemic venous air emboli throughout the portal venous system and femoral veins. The air emboli totally disappeared after HBOT with a longer ascent time. CONCLUSIONS To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of multiple systemic venous air bubbles after emergent HBOT. Physicians should be aware of any kind of complications when treating patients who need HBOT in the emergent setting. Although decompression sickness following HBOT is extremely rare, it should not be ignored by emergency physicians.
静脉空气栓塞是一种罕见的情况，但可能对重要器官产生灾难性的影响。它通常由于医源性原因引起，如中心静脉导管插入、神经外科和其他侵入性操作。在大多数情况下，高压氧治疗（HBOT）是这些情况的最佳治疗方法。然而，高压氧治疗后出现多个静脉空气栓塞在文献中尚未报道。
一名 82 岁女性在火灾现场吸入烟雾后来到急诊科。她有头晕和恶心。就诊时生命体征正常。她因一氧化碳中毒接受了高压氧治疗。高压氧治疗后不久，患者开始出现头晕、腹痛和腿部疼痛。计算机断层扫描显示门静脉系统和股静脉内有多个全身静脉空气栓塞。空气栓塞在更长的上升时间后通过高压氧治疗完全消失。
据我们所知，这是首例紧急高压氧治疗后出现多个全身静脉气泡的病例。医生在紧急情况下治疗需要高压氧治疗的患者时，应注意任何类型的并发症。虽然高压氧治疗后减压病极其罕见，但急诊医生不应忽视。
