After the operation, she was about to be discharged from the hospital and go home, but she almost suffered respiratory failure due to a tube removal.

Ms. Wang, 60 years old, was unfortunately diagnosed with atypical endometrial hyperplasia. The doctor reminded her that she needed to undergo surgery as soon as possible, as the disease could become serious at any time. Although she was reluctant to believe that she was ill, she still followed the doctor's advice. After everything was ready, she was admitted to the hospital.

Because she had suffered from hypertension for many years, the surgical plan was rejected when it was submitted to the anesthesiology department. The anesthesiology department's opinion was that blood pressure should be systematically regulated to reduce perioperative circulatory fluctuations and the risk of various strokes.

At first, she was very dissatisfied with the hospital's refusal to perform the operation. But when she saw the doctor from the anesthesiology department carefully asking her about her health information, she felt that the doctor was probably doing it for her own good, so she followed the arrangement.

After nearly a week of regulation, her blood pressure finally stabilized at over 120. So the surgery plan was put on the agenda again.

In order to better transfuse blood and fluids and regulate vital signs during the operation, the anesthesiologist performed a deep vein puncture and catheterization in her neck.

However, this safety-enhancing catheter almost went terribly wrong.

Here’s what’s going on:

The operation went smoothly and she woke up immediately after the operation. However, her peripheral blood vessels were too thin, so the deep vein catheter was retained.

The day before she was discharged from the hospital, the surgeon helped her remove the catheter, which had been of great help throughout her hospitalization.

But something unexpected happened: after the catheter was removed, she immediately felt short of breath. Although she tried very hard to breathe, her breath seemed to be getting less and less. In desperation, she sweated and tightly grasped the doctor's arm.

The surgeon immediately called his colleagues to help with the rescue and asked the head nurse to contact the anesthesiology department immediately. He knew that in such a complicated situation, the anesthesiology department had the strongest rescue capabilities.

After emergency oxygen inhalation, the situation seemed to have eased, but Ms. Wang was still in great pain with sweat all over her forehead.

After the anesthesiologist arrived and learned what happened, he immediately told everyone to prepare for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and notified the interventional department to prepare for surgical thrombectomy.

When we heard the word "thrombectomy", we were a little confused: cerebral thrombosis? It doesn't seem like it! The patient's consciousness was still okay.

In this complex situation, they immediately placed their trust in the anesthesiology department. At the scene, everything was under the command of the anesthesiology department.

Fortunately, after several violent fluctuations in blood pressure and irregular heart rhythm, her vital signs finally stabilized.

After she was slightly stabilized, the anesthesiologist decided to push her to the CT room immediately.

Just when everyone was puzzled, he explained: It is highly suspected that the patient has a sudden pulmonary embolism.

Subsequent imaging results also confirmed the doctor's judgment.

At this point, it was impossible for her to be discharged from the hospital. For safety reasons, everyone decided to keep her in the intensive care unit for two days for observation.

Fortunately, his condition did not change and he was discharged from the hospital a few days later.

So, some people have questions: What exactly happened?

Now, let me explain it to you:

First of all, there were no problems with the puncture and placement of this catheter, and it really played a very important role during the perioperative period.

However, the problem was that the catheter had to be left in place for a long time. Because her blood vessels were not good, she had to be inserted many times a day. The nurse discussed with the surgeon: The IV was too difficult to insert, could the catheter be left in place for a few more days?

Seeing that the patient was in great pain, the surgeon agreed.

Although I felt something was wrong, there was really no better way. Therefore, I could only tell him to flush the tube and use the heparin cap immediately.

However, what they did not expect was that even with the utmost efforts to avoid blockage and thrombosis, thrombosis still formed at the tip of the catheter due to the severe disruption of the body's coagulation system by the surgical trauma and the reduction of hospital activities.

During the hospital stay, the clot remained firmly attached to the tip of the catheter. However, the moment the catheter was removed, it was free.

The detached blood clot, carried along by the blood flow, passed through the heart and reached the lungs. The capillary network in the lungs no longer allowed it to pass through, thus causing pulmonary embolism.

Fortunately, although it caused transient and severe circulatory fluctuations, the blood clot was small and treated in time, so no major problems occurred.

Finally, we have to say that almost every medical technology is a double-edged sword. It has good goals, but also certain risks. In this case, although the surgeon and nurse did not violate the rules by leaving the catheter in place, leaving the catheter in place for a long time will inevitably lead to various problems. Therefore, it must be removed early when it is not necessary.

[Warm Tips] Follow us, there are a lot of professional medical knowledge here to help you understand the anesthesia issues in surgery~