Early Stage Pulmonary Embolism Because of Stab Wound Injury Without Vascular Penetration

Introduction: Pulmonary embolism, occurring as a result of acute obstruction of the pulmonary artery system, may vary from the frequently observed asymptomatic clinical state to sudden death and is a disease with high morbidity and mortality rates. Pulmonary embolism is most commonly observed within 5-7 days of trauma and has been occasionally reported before 4 days. Case Report: A 40-years-old female was admitted to emergency service with a knife wound injury. Her vital and laboratory values were normal. Physical examination revealed a knife wound injury, measuring 2 x 1 cm, on the femoral midline of the left leg. Then, she was discharged. After approximately 6 h, she presented to another emergency service with complaints of chest pain and syncope. During evaluation, she developed cardiopulmonary arrest and died because of pulmonary embolism. Conclusion: This report presents a case of early stage pulmonary embolism that developed because of circulation disruption caused by the effect of pressure as a result of a localized hematoma owing to an indirect effect of a stab wound injury with no vascular penetration injury.