Subkutant Emfysem og Pneumomediastinum

Komplikation efter rekreationel inhalation af lattergas

Resumé

Rekreationel brug af lattergas er øget i popularitet i Danmark i løbet af 2000-talet. Hypoksi er den hyppigste komplikation efter inhalation og der er i Danmark indberettet 4 dødsfald i forbindelse med inhalation af lattergas. Siden slutningen af 2019 er det observeret et øget forbrug af en ny lattergasbeholder, der indeholder 70 gange mere lattergas⁴, end de traditionelle patroner.

I denne case beskrives en ung kvinde der henvises til akutmodtagelsen grundet brystsmerter, åndenød samt hævelse af bryst og hals. Røntgen og CT af thorax viste udtalt pneumomediastinum og subkutant emfysem. Patienten behandles konservativt med profylaktisk antibiotika. 

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Recreational use of has increased in popularity in Denmark during the 2000s. Hypoxia is the most common complication after inhalation and in Denmark, four deaths related to inhalation of laughing gas have been reported. Since late 2019, an increase in the use of a new laughing gas canister, containing 70 times more laughing gas than the traditional canisters, has been observed. This case report describes a young woman referred to the emergency department due to chest pain, shortness of breath as well as swelling on her chest and in the throat. An x-ray and CT scan of the thorax showed pronounced pneumomediastinum and subcutaneous emphysema. The patient was treated conservatively with prophylactic antibiotics.