Paradoxical gas embolism by transpulmonary passage of venous emboli during hysteroscopic surgery: A case report and discussion

Abstract

After an episode of apparent venous gas embolism in a patient undergoing surgical hysteroscopy, transoesophageal echocardiography revealed air in the left but not in the right heart. Contrast echocardiography failed to demonstrate anatomical right-to-left shunts, making it likely that venous emboli overwhelmed the capacity of lungs to filter emboli, resulting in paradoxical embolization. © The Board of Management and Trustees of the British Journal of Anaesthesia 2008. All rights reserved.