Bilateral Pneumothoraces in a 3-Month-Old Infant During an Apnea Test in the Diagnosis of Brain Death. Issue 5 (October 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Daube, Ariel; Gaffoor, Mohamed; Georgievskaya, Zhanna; Avner, Jeffrey R.
• Is Part Of: Neurology. Volume 11:Issue 5(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-10
• Subjects: Nervous system -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Neurology -- Periodicals; Neurology -- United States -- Periodicals; 616.8
• DOI: 10.1212/CPJ.0000000000001052
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2163-0402

Abstract

Abstract : We present the case of a 3-month-old boy who suffered bilateral pneumothoraces secondary to insufflation of oxygen into the endotracheal tube during the apnea test as part of brain death testing. Although rare, awareness of this potential complication of the apnea test is of particular importance in pediatric patients who have narrow endotracheal tubes because resistance to expiratory flow increases exponentially as lumen diameter decreases.