Fatal pulmonary embolus after uterine artery fibroid embolisation.
We report a 44-year-old woman who developed a fatal pulmonary embolus after uterine artery fibroid embolisation (UAE). Bilateral UAE was carried out through a single right-femoral artery puncture. The largest fibroid in the anterior fundal wall measured 4.5 cm, and the largest fibroid in the posterior fundal wall measured 6 cm. The appearances after UAE were satisfactory, and the procedure was apparently uneventful. No immediate complications were noted. The patient developed sudden-onset shortness of breath and went into cardiac arrest 19 h after the procedure. Postmortem autopsy confirmed that the cause of a death was a pulmonary embolism. To our knowledge this is the first reported case in the United Kingdom in which death occurred from a pulmonary embolus after UAE.
Hamoda
Haitham
H
Queen Charlotte's Hospital, London, UK. haithamhamoda@hotmail.com
Tait
P
P
Edmonds
D K
DK
D000328:Adult; D004621:Embolization, Therapeutic / Q000009:adverse effects*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000209:etiology*; D055988:Uterine Artery; D014594:Uterine Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*