Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 4, 2026
Author Spotlight: Evaluating Clinicians' Adoption of Ultrasound-Guided Vascular Cannulation Through Simulation Training
Published on: August 9, 2024
Silent but lethal: intravenous gas visualized by point-of-care ultrasound
Yanxiang Wu1,2, Jiayuan Dai3, Qing Zhang4
1Department of Echocardiography, Heart Center, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Background:
Venous gas embolus secondary to deep soft tissue infection is a rare but potentially fatal condition in emergency settings that requires urgent medical intervention.
Case Presentation:
We report a case of a 32-year-old female with an invasive mole undergoing chemotherapy who presented with fever and severe bilateral lower limb pain. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) revealed gas emboli on B-mode and Doppler-mode imaging within the femoral veins and further detected emphysematous changes in adjacent intramuscular and subcutaneous tissues, suggesting critical infection and initiating immediate clinical reassessment. The patient was subsequently confirmed to have severe hypoxemia and sepsis, with computed tomography demonstrating extensive gas-forming lesions, ultimately leading to cardiac arrest despite advanced life support.
Conclusion:
This case highlights the critical role of POCUS in the rapid detection of intravascular gas and deep soft tissue infection in time-critical conditions.
Related Concept Videos
02:41Lethal Alleles
Lucien Cuénot discovered lethal alleles in 1905 while studying the inheritance of coat color in mice. The agouti gene is responsible for the color of the coat in mice. This gene codes for an agouti-signaling protein, which is responsible for melanin distribution in mammals. The wild-type allele gives rise to gray-brown coat color in mice, while the mutant allele gives rise to yellow coat color. In addition to coat color, the agouti gene is associated with the yellow...
01:20Gas Exchange and Transport
02:34Kinetic Molecular Theory and Gas Laws Explain Properties of Gas Molecules
03:19Gas Laws: Boyle's, Gay-Lussac, Charles', Avogadro's, and Ideal Gas Law
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...
01:18Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-II
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist (PT) aims to restore function or prevent additional impairment in a patient following an injury or disease. Massage, heat, cold, water, sonar waves, exercises, and electrical stimulation are some treatments used by PTs to treat...