Abstract 15645: Posterior Mediastinal Hematoma as a Rare Complication of Anti-Coagulation Use - A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Introduction: Posterior mediastinal hematoma (PMH) is a rare complication of anti-coagulation (AC) use. We present a complex case of a patient with a sub-massive pulmonary embolism (PE) whose care was complicated by PMH causing airway obstruction following thrombectomy. Case: A 60-year-old male with a history of prostate cancer in remission presented after a syncopal event. On admission, he was afebrile, mildly tachycardic (100bpm), normotensive (135/91), with no oxygen requirement. Laboratory data showed high sensitivity troponin 244 ng/L and BNP 82 pg/ml. CTPA revealed a saddle PE with right heart strain (PESI score 100). He was initiated on anticoagulation and underwent successful mechanical thrombectomy using a Penumbra aspiration catheter. He had acute respiratory failure later that evening, necessitating intubation. Repeat CTPA showed increased clot burden and new onset PMH (Figure 1). Of note, his AC was continued due to clot burden. A repeat thrombectomy was performed using the FlowTriever System Device (Inari Medical, Irvine, CA). Despite this intervention, he continued to struggle with extubation, and a new stridor was noted. Bronchoscopy revealed external compression of proximal trachea correlating with the PMH location. He was deemed too high risk for evacuation of the PMH. Therefore, he underwent tracheostomy to bypass the area of compression. This subsequently allowed for successful extubation. Discussion: While thrombectomy can cause iatrogenic bleeding, no bleeding was seen on the post-procedure angiogram in our patient. Thus, these findings are attributed to PMH. PMH has been reported 6 times in literature (table 1), one associated with PE. Management options include hematoma evacuation or holding AC and performing serial follow up imaging. Our patient did not undergo evacuation of hematoma, and a tracheostomy was used instead to bypass the obstruction. This highlights the need to individualize management of these complex patients.