Acute stroke from air embolism to the middle cerebral artery following upper gastrointestinal endoscopy

Acute stroke from cerebral-artery air embolism is a very rare occurrence during esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD). Computed tomography is a quick and reliable method of detecting cerebral air embolism if performed within an appropriate timeframe. We found 20 reported cases of air embolism with EGD in the literature; only seven of those resulted in cerebral air embolus. We report an eighth such case in which the patient suffered cerebral air embolus with neurological signs of a stroke while undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy.