title: Occlusion balloon catheter-assisted removal of a wedged catheter fragment without a free end from a pulmonary artery.
abstract: Inadvertent embolization of guide wires and catheter fragments are relatively common due to the widespread usage of central venous catheters. A variety of percutaneous techniques has been proposed to retrieve intravascular foreign bodies. The majority of described methods have been dependent on a free end or exposed portion of the foreign body to grasp, snare, or hook. We report the simple use of a balloon catheter to relocate a catheter fragment without a free end that was wedged into a small pulmonary branch to a larger branch. In the larger branch, the fragment was then easily engaged with a standard snare device.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Loma Linda University Medical Center, 2605 G Schuman Pavilion, Loma Linda, CA 92354, USA. jcsmith@llu.edu
authors.forename: Jason Crandall
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Marlon Dean
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Black
authors.forename: Douglas Campbell
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D000792:Angiography; D002404:Catheterization / Q000295:instrumentation*; D002405:Catheterization, Central Venous / Q000009:adverse effects*; D020878:Device Removal; D005471:Fluoroscopy; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011651:Pulmonary Artery; D015641:Radiography, Interventional; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic