Hemopneumothorax After Trigger Point Injection for Fibromyalgia.

CONTEXT: Trigger point injections (TPIs) and acupuncture are common procedures in management of chronic back pain and usually are considered safe. Needling into cervical and thoracic regions can be associated with life-threatening complications.

OBJECTIVE

The team intended to make practitioners aware of the potential for hemopneumothorax after TPI.

DESIGN

The research team describes a case of hemopneumothorax after TPI.

SETTING

The case study took place in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Ankara University School of Medicine (Ankara, Turkey).

PARTICIPANT: The participant was a 45-y-old woman, who had been admitted to the emergency department at the School of Medicine with dyspnea and dizziness after TPI for fibromyalgia.

RESULTS

Computerized tomography of the thorax showed a significant hemopneumothorax at the right hemithorax and a collapsed right lung, markedly in the right, lower lobe. The hemopneumothorax was successfully treated with chest-tube and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Health care professionals need to be aware of hemopneumothorax when performing TPI on the chest wall.