title: Superior vena cava thrombosis treated by angioplasty and stenting in a cirrhotic patient with peritoneovenous shunt.
abstract: We report a case of superior vena cava (SVC) thrombosis in a patient with liver cirrhosis and peritoneovenous surgical Denver shunt, successfully treated by angioplasty. In 2005, a 75-year-old man with a criptogenetic liver cirrhosis and peritoneovenous surgical Denver shunt was admitted to our hospital for chylous ascites. Venography showed a stenosis near the junction of the SVC with the right atrium. Magnetic resonance confirmed an endoluminal filling defect, suggestive of thrombosis, close to the jugular extremity of the peritoneovenous surgical denver shunt. A percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of the SVC thrombosis was successfully performed. Dicumarolic treatment was started. Two and 8 months after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, a computed tomography scan showed the patency of the SVC. The patient died in June 2006 due to severe liver function impairment and hepato-renal syndrome. The present case shows that percutaneous transluminal angioplasty represents a good choice for primary intervention.
authors.affiliation: Institutes of Internal Medicine, Catholic University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leggio
authors.forename: Ludovico
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Abenavoli
authors.forename: Luisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vonghia
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Perrone
authors.forename: Giampaolo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Niccoli
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fusco
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gui
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bonomo
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Donti
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Di Bartolomeo
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gasbarrini
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Addolorato
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000800:Angioplasty, Balloon; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D010536:Peritoneovenous Shunt; D015607:Stents; D013479:Superior Vena Cava Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed