Air embolism as a complication associated with central venous catheter: integrative review

Abstract

Objective: To verify the scientific evidence on gas embolism as a complication linked to the central venous catheter. Methods: This is an integrative literature review, with the selection of articles carried out on the platforms Lilacs, Scielo, Biblioteca Virtual de Saúde and Pubmed, published. Data analysis was through pre-analysis, material exploration, data processing and data interpretation, with results being displayed in a table. Results: Nine articles were found corresponding to our objective. According to the literature, the Central Venous Catheter (CVC) has a high frequency of installation in patients in hospital practice, therefore representing a high potential for complications such as gas embolism, which is little recognized, but which occurs both during CVC insertion and removal. Some risk factors can contribute to the development of an air embolism, such as poor patient positioning, hypovolemia, spontaneous inhalation during the procedure and failure to apply catheter seals. The symptoms range from sudden dyspnea to death if there is no adequate therapeutic approach. Final considerations: Central venous catheters are widely used in hospital clinical practice and, despite not being the most evident complication, gas embolism is rare and potentially fatal resulting from central venous catheterization.