Morris W P, Butler B D, Tonnesen A S, Allen S J
Department of Anesthesiology, University of Texas Medical School, Houston 77030.
Am Rev Respir Dis. 1993 Apr;147(4):1034-7. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/147.4.1034.
The occurrence of venous air embolism in critically ill patients can cause profound cardiopulmonary compromise. Recognized causes include aspiration through an indwelling catheter and pneumothorax. We report three patients in whom we found continuous air embolism in the inferior vena cava that persisted for days. The bubbles appeared to arise from splanchnic veins, and they were associated with barotrauma and positive airway pressure. In the two survivors, the bubbling ceased when the ARDS resolved and airway pressures were decreased. We suspect that venous air embolism is not an uncommon occurrence in critically ill patients receiving high positive airway pressure.
重症患者发生静脉空气栓塞可导致严重的心肺功能损害。已确认的病因包括通过留置导管的抽吸和气胸。我们报告了三例患者，在他们的下腔静脉中发现持续数天的连续性空气栓塞。气泡似乎源自内脏静脉，且与气压伤和气道正压有关。在两名幸存者中，当急性呼吸窘迫综合征（ARDS）缓解且气道压力降低时，气泡消失。我们怀疑在接受高气道正压的重症患者中，静脉空气栓塞并非罕见情况。
