Hamman's sign (rarely, Hammond's sign[1] or Hammond's crunch[2]) is a medical sign consisting of a crunching, rasping sound, synchronous with the heartbeat,[3] heard over the precordium in spontaneous mediastinal emphysema. It is thought to result from the heart beating against air-filled tissues.
| Hamman's sign | |
|---|---|
| Differential diagnosis | pneumomediastinum |
It is named after Johns Hopkins clinician Louis Hamman, M.D.[4]
This sound is heard best over the left lateral position.[5] It has been described as a series of precordial crackles that correlate with the heart beat rather than respiration.
Causes
editHamman's crunch is caused by pneumomediastinum or pneumopericardium, and is associated with tracheobronchial injury[6] due to trauma, medical procedures (e.g., bronchoscopy) or rupture of a proximal pulmonary bleb. It can be seen with Boerhaave syndrome.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Shabetai, Ralph (2003-10-31). The Pericardium - Google Book Search. Springer. ISBN 9781402076398. Retrieved 2008-11-26.
- ^ Hadjis T, Palisaitis D, Dontigny L, Allard M (March 1995). "Benign pneumopericardium and tamponade". Can J Cardiol. 11 (3): 232–4. PMID 7889442.
- ^ "Hamman sign" at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
- ^ synd/3001 at Who Named It?
- ^ McCann], [executive publisher, Judith A. Shilling (2008). Nursing. Ambler, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 171. ISBN 9781582556680.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ . Chu CP, Chen PP (April 2002). "Tracheobronchial injury secondary to blunt chest trauma: Diagnosis and management". Anaesth Intensive Care. 30 (2): 145–52. doi:10.1177/0310057X0203000204. PMID 12002920.
External links
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