Cerebral Air Embolism: a Case Report with an Emphasis of its Pathophysiology and MRI Findings

Abstract

Cerebral air embolism (CAE) is a rare complication of various medical procedures. It manifests with symptoms similar to those of typical acute cerebral infarction, however the treatment is quite different. We present a case of arterial CAE that was associated with a disconnected central venous catheter and appeared as punctate dark signal intensities with aliasing artifacts on the susceptibility-weighted filtered phase magnetic resonance image. The susceptibility-weighted filtered phase image can be helpful for diagnosing CAE and the magnetic resonance imaging reflects the pathophysiology of CAE.

A Case of Cerebral Air Embolism After Dental Procedure

“…This may occur when the volume of air introduced exceeds the capacity of the pulmonary filter and, in the presence of a right-to-left intra-cardiac shunt or even an intra-pulmonary shunt, this air may reach the left cardiac cavities, passing through the aorta, right carotid artery, and finally access the right anterior and middle cerebral circulation. Arterial cerebral air embolism typically presents as punctate air densities in the cerebral parenchyma [4,5].…”