Larengeal and Sublingual Hematoma Causing Upper Airway Obstruction Due to the Use of Warfarin

Abstract

Warfarin is a commonly used anticoagulant agent. Spontaneous bleeding and hematoma are complications that may be encountered during warfarin use. Gastrointestinal and genitourinary bleedings, intracranial hemorrhages, and nasal and submucosal hemorrhages may also occur during warfarin use. Upper airway hematoma is a rare complication but must be rapidly diagnosed as it can cause airway obstruction. 1,2 It is important to recognize this life-threatening emergency, to differentiate it from other pathologies such as anaphylaxis, and to treat it quickly and ef-fectively. We report the case of laryngeal and sublingual hematoma causing airway obstruction due to the use of warfarin. CASE REPORTWritten informed consent was obtained from the patient who participated in this case. A 61-year-old male patient presented with hoarseness, dyspnea, and sore throat, odynophagia for 4 to 5 days. The saturation of the patient with breathing difficulties without oxygen support was measured as 94%. His physical examination revealed sublingual edema