DIRECT ADMINISTRATION OF CHARCOAL INTO THE LUNG AND PLEURAL CAVITY

We report the inadvertent administration of activated charcoal in wate r into the right lung and pleural cavity of a 51-year-old man being tr eated for a salicylate overdose. A mild chemical pneumonitis developed , as did a sterile empyema. Charcoal-stained fluid drained through a t horacostomy tube for 8 weeks. The patient was discharged in good condi tion but died 4 days later after taking another overdose. Direct admin istration of charcoal into the lungs is best prevented by radiographic confirmation of the location of the tube. Charcoal in water may cause less severe pulmonary injury than charcoal in sorbitol.