Severe hypoxaemia and haemodynamic instability following salt tablet broncho-aspiration: in-hospital mimicking of saltwater drowning

Abstract

A 70-year-old woman, hospitalised for asymptomatic hyponatraemia secondary to syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH), required emergency intubation due to severe acute respiratory failure and haemodynamic instability following broncho-aspiration of a salt tablet. We hypothesise that a pathophysiological mechanism resembling saltwater drowning may have contributed to the clinical presentation.

Keywords

• salt tablet
• broncho-aspiration
• drowning