title: Intrathoracic migration of a Kirschner wire.
abstract: Kirschner (K) wires can easily migrate, resulting in serious complications. We report a 49-year-old woman who had a rare and late complication related to the migration of K wire. It had been used for left hip replacement 8 years ago. The patient admitted to our hospital with breathing-dependent chest pain and increasing dyspnea for ∼2 h. Chest X-ray and chest computed tomographic scans revealed the presence of a metallic image of ∼5-6 cm in the right hemithorax. There was a large hemothorax but no pneumothorax. A right thoracotomy was performed and the wire was removed without complications. Surprisingly, no injury was noted to any intervening abdominal structure intra-operatively. Patients, who are treated with K wire, should be informed of the risk of wire migration and should undergo regular postoperative follow-ups including radiography.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Karabük State Hospital, Karabük, Turkey.
authors.forename: Fatma
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ozarslan
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Karabük State Hospital, Karabük, Turkey.
authors.forename: Osman
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Arıkan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chest Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Karabük University, Karabük, Turkey.
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Acat
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesia, Faculty of Medicine, Karabük University, Karabük, Turkey mugearikan@hotmail.com.tr.
authors.forename: Müge
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arıkan
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesia, Karabük State Hospital, Karabük, Turkey.
authors.forename: Volkan
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Temel