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. 2015:2015:730808.
doi: 10.1155/2015/730808. Epub 2015 Nov 26.

Cerebral Venous Air Embolism due to a Hidden Skull Fracture Secondary to Head Trauma

Ai Hosaka  1 , Tetsuto Yamaguchi  2 , Fumiko Yamamoto  2 , Yasuro Shibagaki  2
Affiliations

Cerebral Venous Air Embolism due to a Hidden Skull Fracture Secondary to Head Trauma

Ai Hosaka et al. Case Rep Neurol Med. 2015.

Abstract

Cerebral venous air embolism is sometimes caused by head trauma. One of the paths of air entry is considered a skull fracture. We report a case of cerebral venous air embolism following head trauma. The patient was a 55-year-old man who fell and hit his head. A head computed tomography (CT) scan showed the air in the superior sagittal sinus; however, no skull fractures were detected. Follow-up CT revealed a fracture line in the right temporal bone. Cerebral venous air embolism following head trauma might have occult skull fractures even if CT could not show the skull fractures.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CT scan of the head without contrast: (a) axial cut (bone window) shows air in the superior sagittal sinus (arrow); (b) midsagittal cut of the reconstructed CT (brain window) shows air in the superior sagittal sinus; (c) axial cut (bone window) shows air around the right mandible (arrow); (d) axial cut (bone window) cannot show obvious fractures.
Figure 2
Figure 2
CT scan of the head without contrast 12 days after trauma: (a) axial cut (bone window) cannot show obvious fractures; (b) sagittal cut of the reconstructed CT demonstrates a fracture line in the right temporal bone (arrow).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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