2014 Volume 26 Issue 2 Pages 42-45
A 68-year-old man undergoing chemotherapy for squamous cell carcinoma of the lung was transferred to our hospital because of coma and hematemesis. CT scanning of the brain performed on the day of admission revealed multiple spotty lesions with air-like density in cerebral white matter and the superior sagittal sinus. The patient was diagnosed with multiple cerebral arterial gas embolisms, and treated with edaravone and glyceol. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, recommended for treatment of cerebral arterial gas embolism, was not selected because of the high risk of transfer to another institution for that therapy and in consideration of his critical condition. On the second hospital day, brain CT scanning revealed multiple lesions in cerebral edema areas and the patient died the same day. Multiple cerebral arterial gas embolisms should be considered in neurological emergency cases manifested by coma.
