title: Surgical removal of an intracardiac sewing needle in a 13-month-old Chinese girl: report of a case.
abstract: Abstract Introduction: Sewing needles, albeit a rare case of penetrating cardiac injury, are highly lethal, especially in children, because it is difficult to diagnose and treat. We herein present the case of a 13-month-old girl who was injured by a sewing needle inserted in the myocardium, which probably is the first report from mainland China.Case presentation: The 13-month-old girl was referred to our hospital with a range of symptoms, such as convulsions, diarrhea, and cough. Chest X-ray and echocardiogram revealed a needle located below the aortic valve, passing through the ventricular septum and aortic root. Surgical removal of the needle was performed under extracorporeal circulation. No hemorrhage or arrhythmia was seen, so the operation was ended, and the patient was discharged 8 days after the surgery. Conclusion: An early diagnosis and intervention proved to be life-saving for this penetrating cardiac injury. Hopefully, this case could provide a reference for the treatment of similar situations.
authors.affiliation: c.
authors.forename: Xiangyang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhai
authors.forename: Wenjing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yazhou
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Zhenliang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Penggao
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: Cardiac function; Foreign body; Patient safety; Pediatric; surgery