Pulmonary Artery Pressure Changes during Ethanol Embolization Procedures to Treat Vascular Malformations: Can Cardiovascular Collapse be Predicted?

The mild rise in PA blood pressure in the patients during ethanol embolization correlated strongly with minor elevation in systemic blood pressure throughout the procedure, which the authors believe is related to pain from the ethanol injection causing sympathetic stimulation, even when patients are under general anesthesia. The minimal rise in PA blood pressure during these procedures does not elucidate the cause of the rare complication of cardiovascular collapse during ethanol embolization.