Unusual freshwater near-drowning syndrome in a hospitalized postlobectomy patient.
Near-drowning syndrome depends on the duration of submersion, the amount of fluid aspirated, and the severity of hypoxia. We report a case in which a patient developed ARDS shortly after undergoing a left upper lobectomy and a chest wall resection for a lung carcinoma. On further investigation, the ARDS was caused by near-drowning in a basin of freshwater: the patient's face was submerged by the patient's companion as part of a cultural tradition of trying to clean his lung. We believe that this case presents the etiology of freshwater near-drowning syndrome due to an ethnogenic practice not previously reported.
Sogoloff
H
H
Pulmonary Critical Service, Memorial Sloan-Ketttering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Barrera
R
R
Ginsberg
R
R
Stover
D
D
D000368:Aged; D003469:Culture; D006801:Humans; D001239:Inhalation; D007723:Korea; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D015701:Near Drowning / Q000209:etiology*; D011013:Pneumonectomy; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012128:Respiratory Distress Syndrome / Q000209:etiology*