Sudden profound hypoxaemia in the intensive care unit--a case report

Abstract

Acute hypoxaemia is a life-threatening emergency. Diagnosis of the exact aetiology maybe complicated by the presence of pre-existing lung conditions. A case report is presented of a non-intubated patient with a pre-existing lung tumour who developed sudden profound hypoxaemia 3 days after emergency abdominal surgery. Definitive aetiological diagnosis was delayed due to chest X-ray features suggestive of compression and erosion of tumour tissue into the airway. Emergency computerised tomography (CT) imaging however revealed mucous plugging leading to massive atelectasis as the main aetiology.