Fibrin Clot Mistook as a Worm in the Intravenous Line

Abstract

There have been several reports of foreign bodies being discovered in the intravenous set. In this case, the patient complained that he found a worm in his intravenous line. It was later confirmed as a long, white fibrin deposit by pathologic examination. This happened even though there was a non-return valve in the intravenous line. Also, since there were few red blood cells in the deposit, it did not look like a blood clot. In cases like this, we suggest that physicians keep this possibility in mind to reassure their patients.

Keywords: Fibrin clot; foreign body; intravenous line; non-return valve; patient-controlled analgesia.

Fig. 1. The IV line pattern that was connected to the patient's body. White arrow indicates the location of fibrin clot. PCA, patient-controlled analgesia.

Fig. 2. White arrow indicates the fibrin clot found in the patient-controlled analgesia line.

Fig. 3. (A) Microscopic finding of specimen before staining, ×40. (B) Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining of a fibrin clot, ×400. Blue arrow shows dark pink amorphous material of fibrin. White arrows are indicating white blood cells such as leukocytes and lymphocytes. There are no red blood cells found in this view.