Paradoxical embolism - pulmonary thromboembolism and cerebral ischemia due to patent oval foramen, case report

30 to 40% of cerebrovascular diseases are of unknown or cryptogenic origin; they may be related to patent foramen ovale (PFO) with a prevalence of 12 to 30%. We report the case of a 62 year old woman who underwent surgery for a thyroid tumor. In the postoperative period she presented dyspnea, hypoxe...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Tapia Pérez, Rafael, Álvarez Gamero, Julio César
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2016
Country:Perú
Institution:Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos
Repository:Revistas - Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos
Language:Spanish
OAI Identifier:oai:revistasinvestigacion.unmsm.edu.pe:article/12661
Online Access:https://revistasinvestigacion.unmsm.edu.pe/index.php/anales/article/view/12661
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Paradoxical Embolism
Cerebral Ischemia
Foramen Ovale.
Embolismo Paradojal
Isquemia Cerebral
Foramen Oval.
Description
Summary:30 to 40% of cerebrovascular diseases are of unknown or cryptogenic origin; they may be related to patent foramen ovale (PFO) with a prevalence of 12 to 30%. We report the case of a 62 year old woman who underwent surgery for a thyroid tumor. In the postoperative period she presented dyspnea, hypoxemia, impaired consciousness and expression aphasia. Transthoracic echocardiography showed dilatation of right chambers, and transesophageal echocardiography revealed a patent foramen ovale (PFO) with the presence of echoes compatible with clots bordering this defect; the brain scan revealed a stroke in the left hemisphere. The presence of clots and PFO intraoperatively confirmed the development of pulmonary embolism and paradoxical embolism.