Mediastinal impalement with a fibreglass sheet

Wimalachandra WS, Asmat A
Correspondence: Dr Atasha Asmat, atasha_asmat@ttsh.com.sg

ABSTRACT
Mediastinal impalement injuries are uncommon and often fatal. There have been very few reported cases of survival following mediastinal impalement. Patients who present with these injuries always undergo operative intervention regardless of their underlying haemodynamic status or associated injuries. We herein present a case of mediastinal impalement injury, where a sheet of fibreglass had fractured the manubrium and entered the anterior mediastinum with no associated great vessel injury. The fibreglass sheet was removed via a partial sternotomy and the patient made an uneventful postoperative recovery.

Keywords: impalement injury, mediastinum, thoracic
Singapore Med J 2014; 55(9): e148-e149; http://dx.doi.org/10.11622/smedj.2014129

http://smj.org.sg/sites/default/files/5509/5509cr4.pdf

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