Trendelenburg pulmonary embolectomy for cardiac arrest secondary to massive pulmonary embolism.

Cardiac arrest secondary to massive pulmonary embolism is rarely reversible by nonsurgical measures. A patient sustained refractory cardiac arrest and was resuscitated by Trendelenburg pulmonary embolectomy without cardiopulmonary bypass. This report describes the diagnosis and treatment of this 37-year-old man and provides a review of the literature on pulmonary embolectomy for patients in whom cardiac arrest has occurred. Awareness of the feasibility of salvaging patients with cardiac arrest secondary to massive pulmonary embolism may lead to wider application of pulmonary embolectomy when conventional resuscitation is unsuccessful.