Serious complications from dislocation of a Watchman left atrial appendage occluder.
Left atrial appendage (LAA) elimination is regarded to protect patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) from stroke or embolism. The Watchman occluder is a device for percutaneous LAA occlusion and is at present investigated in the PROTECT AF trial. In a 78-year-old man, embolization of the Watchman device occurred 10 minutes after implantation. At emergency cardiac surgery, the device was removed from the aortic valve and an aortic bioprosthesis and a pacemaker had to be implanted. One year postoperatively, he still suffers from heart failure. This case shows that percutaneous LAA occlusion may result in serious complications.
Stöllberger
Claudia
C
Krankenanstalt Rudolfstiftung, 2. Medizinische Abteilung, Vienna, Austria. claudia.stoellberger@chello.at
Schneider
Birke
B
Finsterer
Josef
J
D000368:Aged; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery*; D020517:Atrial Appendage; D001807:Blood Vessel Prosthesis / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011475:Prosthesis Failure