To the Editor:—
Neonatal death after delivery by cesarean section due to air embolus in the fetal vasculature has never been reported to our knowledge. For this reason, the following case is reported.
Report of a Case:—
A 27-year-old white woman, gravida 5, para 3, abortus 1, with expected date of confinement of July 8, 1968, was admitted to the Ochsner Foundation Hospital on June 22, with the chief complaint of painless passage of bright-red blood per vagina. The patient had had three previous low transverse cesarean sections. The presentation was breech and floating. Fetal heart tones were strong and regular. Preoperative examination suggested possible partial separation of the low-lying placenta. The maternal hemoglobin value preoperatively was 10.8 gm/100 ml.A cesarean hysterectomy had been planned in advance. When the abdomen was opened, the surgeon noted that the uterus was rotated to the left, the round ligament lying anteriorly. A