Hemiplegia caused by inadvertent intra-carotid infusion of total parenteral nutrition.

A 24 year-old woman developed acute hemiplegia and a seizure following accidental catheterization of the right common carotid artery and total parenteral nutrition infusion. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed lesions in the frontal lobe and putamen consistent with an ischemic stroke. Angiography through the central venous catheter confirmed its intra-arterial location. The patient's weakness improved after hyperbaric oxygen treatment. We concluded that stroke or seizures during total parenteral nutrition administration through a central venous catheter should alert one to the possibility of inadvertent intra-arterial infusion, especially in patients who have had central lines inserted several times previously.