A silent compartment syndrome following elective minimally invasive mitral valve repair

A 63-year-old male with severe mitral valve regurgitation underwent an elective minimally invasive mitral valve repair. Peripheral cannulation of the right femoral vein and artery was performed with a total cardiopulmonary bypass time of 268 min. There were no intraoperative complications. 12 hours postoperatively the patient reported mild pain in the right lower leg with a subjective decrease in sensation. Compartmental pressures were significantly raised. The patient underwent lower leg fasciotomies, which revealed bulging compartments confirming the diagnosis of an evolving compartment syndrome (CS). This rare case demonstrates the highly variable aetiology, pathophysiology and presenting symptoms of CS. Clinicians in any specialty should consider this diagnosis if there is a possibility of local vascular compromise secondary to an intervention/treatment. This diagnosis is not exclusive to patients with trauma and as such clinicians should have a high index of suspicion for this potentially devastating condition.