Unexpected Sudden Bouts of Coughing During Endourology Procedures: Sign of Impending Doom

Endourological procedures are commonly performed in our daily practice. Most of the time, this type of surgery is usually performed under regional anesthesia and is usually not associated with any complications. The irrigation pump used in such procedures consists of irrigating fluid flowing in high pressure. If left unnoticed, sometimes irrigating fluid can lead to passage of air into the patient venous system leading to air embolism. This can be a disastraous complication leading to even sudden mortality. Here we present a case of such incident where patient has sudden coughing followed by drop in oxygen saturation.