Citation

Tuladhar S, Eltayeb A, Lakshmanan S, Yiu P. Ann. Card. Anaesth. 2009; 12(2): 136-139.

Affiliation

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery and Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgery Unit, New Cross Hospital, Wolverhampton, UK.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, Indian Association of Cardiovascular Thoracic Anaesthesiologists)

DOI

10.4103/0971-9784.53448

PMID

19602739

Abstract

We describe a case of delayed presentation of attempted suicide with a nail gun that penetrated both the right and left ventricle. Nearly invisible entry point of the nail did not reflect the gravity of the injury. A prompt and accurate history along with chest X-ray and bedside transthoracic echocardiography facilitated localization of the nails and helped assess the damage. Despite cardiac arrest after induction of general anesthesia, the patient had a successful outcome. Issues related to the injury site, modalities of investigation and management strategies in a patient with cardiac tamponade are discussed.

Language: en