New published article: Mallick et al., 2024

Congratulations to Dr Michaud and colleagues on the publication of their case report on a patient presenting a retropharyngeal hematoma and total airway obstruction in the Journal of International Medical Research. We are delighted to have contributed to the success of this article!

𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 is the percutaneous insertion of a catheter into the 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐧, 𝐣𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐧, 𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐧, for example. This device can be used in emergency situations, or to administer intravenous medication. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 such as pneumothorax, hematomas, or arterial punctures leading to retropharyngeal hematomas can occur following these procedures, in around 15% of cases.

In this article, the authors report the case of a 𝟔𝟐-𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫-𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 diagnosed with 𝐚𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐦𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐥𝐞𝐮𝐤𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐚 with disseminated intravascular coagulation. Placement of a subclavian central venous catheter 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 was undertaken but the attempt failed, causing a 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚. A cervicothoracic angiographic scan revealed a large hematoma in the right subclavian and supraclavicular soft tissues, leading to reduced airway caliber, particularly in the retropharyngeal area, and 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬.

The patient was managed and treated in intensive care until full recovery. This case illustrates the 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 when placing a central venous catheter, as a 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐲𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚 is a life-threatening complication whose treatment carries a risk of iatrogenic complications.