title: Breakage of extracted leads: another management option.
abstract: Extracted lead breakage is a well-known technical complication of lead extraction. If the remaining fragment is longer than  a few cm, it should be removed. The femoral or jugular approach, with different tools, is used. We describe the utility of the  extracted lead venous entry approach as the optional solution in six patients. The role of the shape of the utilised sheath and  the presence of venous entry valve and favourable specific properties of basket catheters are discussed, and also the utility of  a repeated Byrd dilator.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Medical University of Lublin, Poland. a_kutarski@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Andrzej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kutarski
authors.forename: Radosław
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pietura
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Czajkowski
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D020878:Device Removal / Q000379:methods*; D004567:Electrodes, Implanted / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004868:Equipment Failure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult