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Case Reports
. 2025 Sep 9;17(9):e91889.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.91889. eCollection 2025 Sep.

Cervicomediastinal Hematoma From Inferior Thyroid Artery Injury After Attempted Permanent Dialysis Catheter Placement Without Ultrasound Guidance

Grażyna Waśka  1 , Pawel Radkowski  2 , Hubert Oniszczuk  3 , Piotr Nowakowski  4 , Elwira Misztela-Lisiecka  5
Affiliations
Case Reports

Cervicomediastinal Hematoma From Inferior Thyroid Artery Injury After Attempted Permanent Dialysis Catheter Placement Without Ultrasound Guidance

Grażyna Waśka et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Permanent dialysis catheter (PDC) placement is a routine hospital procedure, but it may lead to rare and life-threatening complications. We present the case of a 41-year-old woman who developed hemomediastinum caused by injury to a branch of the inferior thyroid artery during internal jugular vein cannulation using anatomical landmarks. The patient developed neck swelling and respiratory symptoms shortly after the procedure. Diagnosis was confirmed via imaging, and successful hemostasis was achieved with transcatheter arterial embolization. This case highlights the importance of careful technique and prompt recognition of rare vascular injuries.

Keywords: central venous catheterization; inferior thyroid artery injury; mediastinal hematoma; permanent dialysis catheter; transcatheter arterial embolization.

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Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Informed consent for treatment and open access publication was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Radiological imaging
(A) Axial contrast-enhanced CT image of the neck demonstrating a large right-sided cervical hematoma (arrow) causing marked leftward displacement of the trachea. (B) Coronal reformatted CT image showing the full craniocaudal extent of the hematoma (arrow) extending into the superior mediastinum.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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