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- George Adigbli and Jonathan King.
- Department of Surgery, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
- BMJ Case Rep. 2015 Dec 15; 2015.
AbstractNeck haematomas are rare but potentially life-threatening complications of thyroid surgery. Postoperative monitoring, early diagnosis and immediate management are critical, as this condition can rapidly lead to compression and obstruction of the upper airway. We present a case of a 69-year-old woman who suffered respiratory failure resulting from a post-thyroidectomy haematoma with airway obstruction and severe haemodynamic compromise, presenting a difficult anaesthetic challenge. Following development of a likely 'cannot intubate, cannot ventilate' situation despite haematoma evacuation, the patient underwent emergency cricothyroidotomy, before rapid sequence intubation and subsequent surgical haemostasis. 2015 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.
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