Anesthesia Management of Emergent Sternotomy for Acute Cardiac Tamponade in a Pediatric Hematopoietic Stem Cells Recipient

Abstract

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the infusion of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells to reconstitute the bone marrow. Due to the long-term consequences of HSCT, anesthetic management of these patients could be complicated. Here the authors describe the clinical features and management of a hemopoietic stem cell recipient with a systemic form of GVHD, who presented with cardiac tamponade due to right ventricular injury, after pericardiocentesis for a severe pericardial effusion, which led to bedside pericardial window and sternotomy with multiple cardiac arrests in the operating room