title: A fatal complication of ultrasound-guided abdominal paracentesis.
abstract: Ultrasound-guided abdominal paracentesis is a procedure that is frequently performed by radiologists for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. This procedure has been shown to be safe with few complications. We report the case of a patient who underwent an ultrasound-guided therapeutic abdominal paracentesis for refractory ascites complicated by intraperitoneal hemorrhage leading to death. This case suggests that ultrasound-guided paracentesis may need to become a more standardized procedure and that in the event of hemorrhage, alternative treatment options such as embolization or surgical intervention should be utilized when manual compression fails.
authors.affiliation: Radiology Department, McGill University Health Center, Royal Victoria Hospital, 687 Pine Avenue West, Montreal, Quebec, H3H 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seidler
authors.forename: Karl
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sayegh
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.forename: Benoît
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mesurolle
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001201:Ascites / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006465:Hemoperitoneum / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019152:Paracentesis / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D018608:Ultrasonography, Doppler; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional
keywords: embolization; hemorrhage; interventional; paracentesis; ultrasonography