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Updated: May 12, 2026

Local Anesthetic Thoracoscopy for Undiagnosed Pleural Effusion
Published on: November 10, 2023
Empyema thoracis due to intrapleural migration of retained vascular catheter
Olusola Oduntan1, Jason Turner
1Department of Surgery, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26507, USA. solaodunt@aol.com
Abstract:
Intravascular retention and embolization of fragment of central venous catheters is a rare but well-documented complication of in-dwelling vascular access devices and ports. We describe the case of a 39-year-old male with fracture of the central venous catheter during removal of subcutaneous vascular access port. Over the next 3 years, the catheter fragment embolized through the pulmonary circulation and subsequently migrated into the left pleural space. He presented with empyema thoracis associated with thoracolumbar vertebral osteomyelitis. He required video-assisted thoracoscopy for retrieval of the catheter fragment, left lung decortication, and subsequent multilevel vertebral corpectomy and spine stabilization procedures.
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