Pulmonary edema due to negative pressure with classical laryngeal mask. Presentation of a pediatric case

Abstract

Pulmonary edema due to negative pressure is a rare and dramatic complication in general anesthetic. It usually occurs as a consequence of a laryngeal spasm or another cause of respiratory tract obstruction.A case was presented with the aim of showing the elements used for the diagnosis and treatment of the pulmonary edema due to negative pressure. An ASA I, 7-year-old female patient, was operated on a functional metatarsus varus with balanced general anesthetic and classical laryngeal mask number 3. She developed this adverse event during the anesthetic recovery. The diagnosis was based on the thoracoabdominal dissociation when recovering spontaneous ventilation, crepitation in hemithoraxes, central cyanosis, hypoxemia, and alveolar bilateral diffused infiltrate. The trachea was intubated, ventilation was controlled with positive pressure at the end of the expiration and furosemide was administered. The patient was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit where she evolved satisfactorily. This is a syndrome whose true incidence is unknown as a result of the lack of familiarization with it. Patients’ evolution is favorable whenever the right diagnosis and treatment are timely established.