Cerebral air embolism through a central venous catheter in the absence of intracardiac shunt

Central venous catheters are routinely placed on medically complex patients for a variety of reasons, including facilitating intravenous access in difficult intravenous (IV) access situations, accurate hemodynamic monitoring, large-volume resuscitation, medication administration, nutritional support, and continuous renal replacement. As with other invasive medical procedures, placement, maintenance, and discontinuation of central venous catheters introduces risk and potential complications. We report a case of bilateral cerebral infarct secondary to air embolism through the right internal jugular vein venous catheter in the absence of intracardiac shunt in a patient with ischemic colitis who underwent total abdominal colectomy.