CONTRALATERAL LOOP SNARE REMOVAL OF A RUPTURED AND ENTRAPPED ANGIOPLASTY BALLOON

We describe a technique that extracted a ruptured angioplasty balloon which had become entrapped by a calcified left common iliac artery ste nosis. The balloon catheter had been advanced crossover from the right and could not be retracted directly into a sheath across the aortic b ifurcation. Therefore, a guidewire was inserted through the balloon ca theter and captured by a loop snare advanced from the left femoral art ery, The loop snare was also used to free the balloon wings from the s tenosis. The balloon was then pulled into a 10 Fr sheath and removed a s a unit with the sheath.