Sand aspiration with near-drowning: radiographic and bronchoscopic findings

摘要

Sand and foreign-body aspiration may accompany drowning and near-drowning, but few details re- garding such patients are available in the literature. We report a 26-yr-old woman who suffered near- drowning after a motor-vehicle accident. Initial attempts at ventilation were compromised by in- creased peak airway pressures, which decreased following the removal of large amounts of sand from the patient's endotracheal tube. Chest radiographs and computed tomographic (CT) scans of the pa- tient obtained upon her arrival in the emergency department demonstrated sand bronchograms within the lower lobes of both lungs, and sand within the maxillary sinuses and stomach.