Femoral central venous catheter placement is a common procedure performed in the pediatric intensive care unit.
Complete heart block is a rare but possible complication during pediatric central venous access procedures.
Knowledge of this complication is vital to safely performing this procedure well.
Femoral central venous catheter (CVC) placement is a common procedure performed in the pediatric intensive care unit. Femoral CVCs have a relatively low intraprocedural complication rate compared with other access sites. We describe a case of guidewire-induced transient complete heart block during femoral CVC insertion. This complication is rare in the pediatric population. The incidence of its occurrence and guidance to prevent this complication are discussed.
