Live Life Team
If the blood stream is blocked with a substance, it is known as air embolism. The substance could be in gaseous state. It could be a solid or semi-solid too. Medical term of this substance is embolus. Blood clot is a common embolus. However, fat, cholesterol, air or gases such as nitrogen can also cause embolism. The bubble caused by the air blocks the blood stream, resulting in embolism. This bubble is caused by nitrogen during sea diving. Bends or decompression illness is the consequence of this bubble. The arteries have narrow branches and the bubble travelling along any of these branches block the blood flow at some point.
The seriousness of this phenomenon depends on the importance of the area of the body where it is stuck. If it blocks the blood flow to the brain, the brain tissues die for want of oxygen. The damage caused to the brain in this way may be irreparable. An embolus in a vein causes only bulging of the vein, and is not harmful until it reaches an artery when pumped out of the heart.
What are the exact causes of air embolism
This sometimes happens to the divers when they hold breath. Bends is a common name for this air embolism. The air at depth has high pressure. The divers breathe it before it expands and becomes free. Therefore, this air expands only at their lungs. Nitrogen enters the veins here. It reaches heart then. The air bubbles can disallow blood supply to the brain or any other vital organs. It can be the reason blot clots too.
Further, air embolism can happen during surgical treatment to arteries or veins when excessive air is injected by mistake. Blood transfusions also associate with such risks. Open-heart surgery and caesarean operations can lead to this condition. Due to accidents, when heart is crushed, air embolism can occur. There are cases of air embolism in pregnant women due to oral sex.
What are the symptoms of air embolism
It depends on the area where the blockage has occurred. If air embolism affects the brain, the person becomes unconscious. It may lead to fits, heart attack or a stroke. The divers with air embolism have pain in the joints. They may have itching and the skin appears mottled.
There are other symptoms also, which include low blood pressure, hypoxia, irregular breathing/heartbeat, weakness, cyanosis and disturbed vision. It could result in heart attack if the embolism occurs in coronary arteries. Embolism in the lungs can cause shortness of breath and chest pain.
How air embolism is diagnosed
The symptoms develop within eight hours after coming to the surface, in the case of divers. After knowing the symptoms, doctors carry out physical examination and advise x-ray of chest to rule out any other cause. To avoid the risk of air embolism during surgeries, doctors monitor the person through transesophageal echocardiography, Doppler ultrasound, pulmonary artery catheter and stethoscope.
How air embolism is treated
Upon knowing the symptoms from the diver, if the diagnosis confirm air embolism, doctors immediately give the treatment by recompression in a special chamber to reduce the size of the nitrogen bubble.
If it happens during a surgery, the surgeons prevent further air entry into the system. They reduce the air already present in the system. They give pure oxygen, so that nitrogen is expelled out while breathing. They introduce fluids to prevent blood pressure. They maintain the heart functions with the help of drugs.
If the air embolism has affected the brain, the doctors treat it with barbitureates to relieve the person from seizure.
