Man, 60, burst into FLAMES during open heart surgery – after swabs caught fire
SURGEONS were left shocked when a man caught fire mid-op.
The man's chest burst into flames while doctors in Australia performed open heart surgery.
Medics believe oxygen and anaesthetic leaked out of a hole in the man's lung.
It then ignited after one of the surgeon's tools sparked during the procedure.
Thankfully, doctors were able to put the fire out ASAP, and carried on with the op.
Burst into flames
Medics at Austin Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, revealed how the chest of the 60-year-old unidentified patient burst into flames.
In August 2018, they were at the beginning of an op to repair a tear in his aorta (the main artery out of the heart), when they accidentally punctured one of his lungs.
Because he'd had lung disease in the past, his right lung was swollen and stuck to his rib cage.
That meant that to get to his heart, docs had to break the lung and as soon as they punctured it, air began to escape.
In order to keep the main breathing, the team had to increase the amount of oxygen being pumped into the patient's face mask.
Before long, however, they smelt the anaesthetic leaking out of his chest and into the room.
Doc's tool sparked fire
The surgeons had a cauterising tool, which is used to close wounds by burning flesh.
When it sparked, the gas caused it to set fire to dry swabs in the man's chest.
Staff managed to put the fire out so quickly that no injury was done to the man, and the rest of the op went without a hitch.
Dr Ruth Shaylor revealed the bizarre tale during a conference, saying that it proved how important it was for operating staff to know about the dangers of oxygen in operating rooms.
Not the first case
Astonishingly, it's not the first time someone's caught fire on the operating table.
But Dr Shaylor said there have only been a few cases of chest cavity fires, and she also stressed that it'd only been reported in people with lung disease or respiratory issues.
MORE ON CASE REPORTS
"All have involved the presence of dry surgical packs, electrocautery, increased... oxygen concentrations, and patients with COPD or pre-existing lung disease," she explained.
She told the annual meeting of the European Society of Anaesthesiology in Vienna that the case highlighted the "continued need for fire training and prevention strategies and quick intervention to prevent injury whenever electrocautery is used in oxygen-enriched environments.
"In particular, surgeons and anaesthetists need to be aware that fires can occur in the chest cavity if a lung is damaged or there is an air leak for any reason, and that patients with COPD are at increased risk."
We pay for your stories! Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 782 4368. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours