[Bilateral hydrothorax with hydromediastinum after accidental catheter dislocation]

We report a complication during the insertion time of a central venous catheter in a patient with intracerebral bleeding. This complication was caused by an inadvertent dislocation of a subclavian catheter. Hydromediastinum and bilateral hydrothorax developed. There was a clear diagnosis followed by removal of the central venous catheter after radiological investigations could explain the cause of the complication and the clinical symptoms. In the course of events mediastinitis was diagnosed. The clinical condition improved under antibiotic therapy. The patient could be transferred to another clinical unit for endovascular treatment of an arterio-venous cerebral malformation.