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Fatal central venous air embolism: A rare complication of esophageal dilation by rendezvous
Author(s) -
Zald Philip B.,
Andersen Peter E.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.21304
Subject(s) - medicine , rendezvous , dysphagia , radiology , complication , swallowing , dilation (metric space) , surgery , esophageal cancer , cancer , mathematics , combinatorics , engineering , spacecraft , aerospace engineering
Background. Esophageal dilation by rendezvous is a useful technique for the treatment of complicated esophageal strictures. Methods and Results. We present a case of a 74‐year‐old man with chronic dysphagia caused by a complete cervical esophageal stricture that developed after external beam radiotherapy for treatment of papillary thyroid carcinoma. During attempted dilation using the rendezvous technique, the patient suffered a fatal pulmonary air embolism. The technique of esophageal dilation by rendezvous, complications, and risk factors for development of venous air embolism are discussed. Conclusion. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in the literature of fatal venous air embolism after dilation by rendezvous. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2010