Chest tube injury to left ventricle: complication or negligence?
case_report · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 20609810.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2010.01.075.
- No licence information is recorded for this record.
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Abstract
An injury to the left ventricle after a chest tube insertion is a rare but lethal phenomenon that is likely to occur if precautions are not seriously addressed. We present a 15-year-old girl who was diagnosed a left empyema thoracis. An attempt to place a chest drain in this young girl was almost fatal. A left ventricular repair together with thoracotomy and decortication were successful. This case emphasizes the rarity of this lethal complication and the importance of the correct technique for chest tube insertion.
Medical subject headings
- Chest Tubes
- Empyema, Pleural
- Heart Ventricles
- Malpractice
- Thoracic Surgery