Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is an emerging imaging modality that can be used to diagnose ventilatory and intrathoracic perfusion mismatches in unstable patients at the bedside. We present a case of a postoperative hypoxic patient in the intensive care unit (ICU) who was too unstable for transport for computed tomography (CT) imaging but was diagnosed and treated for a pulmonary embolism using EIT at the bedside. After the patient clinically improved, CT imaging confirmed the pulmonary embolism diagnosis. EIT is a promising diagnostic tool that may have great utility in ICUs, where it can be safely applied at the bedside.
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