Air embolism as a rare complication of lung biopsy: A case report

Abstract

Lung biopsy is an important interventional radiology procedure allowing the characterization of lesions with suspected malignancy. The most frequent complications are pneumothorax and hemorrhage. Air embolism is a rare but potentially fatal occurrence. In this case report, we present an air embolism after core needle CT-guided biopsy showing CT and MRI features that radiologists should expect in the everyday clinical practice.

Keywords: Air embolism; Cerebral ischemia; Lung biopsy.