Abstract

Central venous catheter (CVC) insertion is a commonly done procedure but associated with some potential complications. In our case, intraoperatively we placed a CVC into the right subclavian vein of the patient for a neurosurgical procedure. Subsequently, in the neurosurgical intensive care unit, on checking the patency of the CVC, only the distal and proximal lumens were working and no backflow of blood was detected from the middle port. A chest X-ray and ultrasound were done immediately, which did not reveal why the middle port was blocked. Later CVC was removed, and on examination of the catheter, we noted an intraluminal fibrin clot and a partial tear near the opening of the middle port. This is an uncommon complication of a CVC insertion that is catheter tear along with fibrin clot occluding the middle port of the CVC, which was detected in time and managed successfully.