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The traveling pelvic bullet: a case of retrograde ballistic migration through the venous system
Justin S Hatchimonji1, Shariq S Raza1, Niels D Martin1
1Division of Traumatology, Surgical Critical Care, and Emergency Surgery, Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
Abstract:
Migration of a ballistic missile through the vasculature is rare but important to recognize. It can lead to diagnostic confusion and seemingly unexplainable bullet trajectories. We have described the case of a young man with a gunshot wound to the axillary vein and initial embolus to the inferior vena cava. The bullet subsequently migrated to the right common iliac vein, allowing for straightforward retrieval.
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