Abstract
Neurogenic pulmonary edema is commonly caused by damages to the central nervous system, such as subarachnoid hemorrhage, head injury, and epilepsy, but is rarely caused by cerebral infarction. We report a case of neurogenic pulmonary edema caused by cerebral infarction in a 54-year-old woman who was hospitalized for glaucoma filtration surgery. The operation was performed under general anesthesia, and she was transferred from the operation theater to her room after extubation. She complained of severe dyspnea just after returning to her room and developed cardiopulmonary arrest within a short time. She was successfully resuscitated, but chest radiograph and chest CT showed marked infiltrative shadows over both lung fields, indicating pulmonary edema. We required an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation system to treat severe hypoxia. We did not suspect cardiogenic pulmonary edema because pulmonary artery wedge pressure monitored by the Swan-Ganz catheter was not high and echocardiography showed normal left ventricular wall motion. Head CT showed early signs of cerebral infarction, and we diagnosed the condition of the patient as neurogenic pulmonary edema. Thus, we should consider the possibility of neurogenic pulmonary edema while treating sudden-onset pulmonary edema.
