Transseptal left heart catheterization: a review of 278 studies.
In our laboratory, we performed 278 transseptal left heart catheterizations in adult patients over a period of 13 years. The left atrium was entered in 91.4% of the intended left heart catheterizations. Of 252 attempts, the left ventricle was entered in 96.1%. Major complications were aortic puncture (0.7%), pericardial puncture/suspected tamponade (3.2%), systemic arterial embolism (1.1%), and suspected perforation of the inferior vena cava (0.4%). There were no deaths. Although less frequently performed during the last decade, the transseptal catheterization technique has a complication rate of the same magnitude as during periods when this method was more commonly applied.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001011:Aorta / Q000293:injuries; D001919:Bradycardia / Q000209:etiology; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D002542:Intracranial Embolism and Thrombosis / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010496:Pericardium / Q000293:injuries