Acute Ischaemia of the Hand Following Accidental Radial Artery Infusion of Depo-Medrone

Abstract

Acute ischaemia of the hand following the accidental intra-arterial injection of steroid has not, to our knowledge, been previously reported. We present such a case of the injection of Depo-Medrone with Lidocaine (Upjohn) into the right radial artery during attempted treatment of stenosing tenosynovitis of the right thumb. The resultant acute ischaemia was successfully managed after 20 hours by a combination of surgical thrombectomy, intra-arterial streptokinase and intravenous heparin and thymoxamine.