An unusual case of post operative nausea, vomiting and neck pain.
A case is described of subarachnoid haemorrhage caused by vertebral artery dissection following general anaesthesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy. It is postulated that the dissection may have been a result of neck manipulation during intubation or other movements whilst paralysed, or alternatively, due to intra-operative blood pressure changes occurring in a patient with a predisposition to arterial disruption. The case highlights the important symptom of neck pain in a patient with an intracranial catastrophe. Fortunately, despite a dramatic clinical presentation her recovery has been good.
Ringrose
T
T
Department of Critical Care Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
Thompson
W
W