title: Systemic air embolism detected during percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy: report of two cases and a proposal for a routine postprocedure computed tomography scan of the aorto-cardiac region.
abstract: Systemic air embolism is a rare but potentially fatal complication of percutaneous transthoracic biopsy. Herein, we report two cases of nonfatal air embolism that occurred during a computed tomography (CT)-guided lung biopsy. It can be concluded that postprocedure CT scans of the aorto-cardiac region and attention focused on systemic air on CT scan images during biopsy procedures can be helpful for early recognition of the complication, a step that is important for successful treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan 70403, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hsueh-Li
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Lili
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Ta-Jung
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Chung
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001027:Aortography / Q000379:methods*; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D004618:Embolism, Air / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male