A case of traumatic mediastinal hematoma

Abstract

A 42-year-old man was admitted to the emergency ward of our hospital, because of disturbance of consciousness and chest pain. He was hit on his chest by a man in a drunken brawl, 10 days prior to the admission.
His chest X-rays on admission showed abnormal mediastinal widening and a fracture of the sternum, but pulmonary angiogram and aortogram revealed no evidence of involvement of great vessels. The abnormal mediastinal widening which was diagnosed to be the traumatic mediastinal hematoma, reduced in size gradually for first 10 days in the hospital, but began to enlarge again thereafter.
The mediastinal hematoma was removed by surgery on the 19th day of the admission.