Fatal fat embolism after spinal fusion for scoliosis
J. E. Gittman, T. A. Buchanan, B. J. Fisher, P. S. Bergeson and P. E. Palmer
An adolescent girl who underwent Harrington instrumentation and spinal
fusion for idiopathic scoliosis had the adult respiratory distress syndrome
develop in the immediate postoperative period. Massive fat embolization to
the lungs was present at postmortem examination, an apparently rare
complication of this surgical procedure. This case emphasizes the necessity
of maintaining a high index of suspicion. In any clinical setting that
would place a patient at risk for fat emboli and illustrates the
unreliability of many of the clinical and laboratory features frequently
described as useful for establishing the diagnosis.
