Acute abdominal aortic thrombosis following the Heimlich maneuver.

Complications from the Heimlich maneuver are relatively infrequent. Two fatal cases of abdominal aortic thrombosis have been reported following this technique. We report on the first patient that suffered an acute thrombosis of the abdominal aorta and survived. Prompt recognition of this complication provides the only hope of survival from this rare and catastrophic complication.