Situs Inversus Totalis in the Critical Care Unit: A Case Report and Literature Review

Situs inversus is a rare congenital disorder where the reversal of some of the major thoracic or abdominal organs is present. In this disorder, alterations in the fetus's organ lateralization lead to a complete reversal in the arrangement of the internal organs. Most of the time, they are found incidentally when having a procedure or imaging modality. Little has been written regarding the challenges encountered while providing critical care to these patients. Here we present the case of a 68-year-old male patient admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with hypoxemic respiratory failure secondary to pneumonia who underwent diagnostic bronchoscopy for organism identification and was confirmed to have situs inversus totalis. Situs inversus totalis represents a challenge at different levels of care to these patients, including in the ICU. Limitations in critical care can be seen upon imaging identification, and during routine procedures performed at the ICU. Confusion might appear while performing bedside point of care ultrasound, obtaining vascular access, performing electrocardiogram, and sample identification, among others. The case brings the relevance of being able to recognize this rare disorder, which can be diagnosed even in advanced age since it might present the clinician with challenges at the time of providing care to patients.