Gas in coronary artery: A case of fatal decompression sickness evaluated by computed tomography

A 54-year-old man suffered a leg cramp while diving in the ocean at a depth of 20 meters. He began to surface, with his ascent based on a decompression table. He lost consciousness at the surface and was rescued by a nearby boat. The boat staff judged him to be in cardiac arrest, so they performed chest compressions. When the boat reached port where an ambulance was waiting, emergency medical technicians confirmed that the patient was in cardiac arrest; his initial rhythm was asystole. Treated with basic life support, the patient was then transported to a rendezvous point, where a physician-staffed helicopter waited. The patient remained in cardiac arrest, so the staff of the helicopter performed tracheal intubation with mechanical ventilation, securing a venous route, infusion of adrenaline, and mechanical chest compression. On arrival at our hospital 100 minutes after collapse, he remained in cardiac arrest. Continued advanced cardiac life support failed to obtain spontaneous circulation. Whole-body computed tomography (CT) at 120 minutes after the collapse showed multiple gas bubbles in the heart, aorta, inferior vena cava, cerebral artery, coronary artery and portal vein with lung edema. This is the first case to show gas in the bilateral coronary arteries on CT. The present case clearly demonstrates that decompression sickness can also induce acute coronary syndrome.