ENDOVASCULAR RETRIEVAL OF 2 MIGRATED VENOUS STENTS BY MEANS OF BALLOON CATHETERS

The usefulness of vascular stenting was demonstrated in both arterial and venous applications to restore patency and improve;suboptimal resu lts after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty. Dislodgement of venou s stents with an embolization into the right cavities; or the pulmonar y artery, however, is one of the most feared complications of this pro cedure. Percutaneous removal of these migrated stents is an appealing method of replacing more invasive operative intervention with cardiopu lmonary bypass, which may be very hazardous in these often severely il l patients. We describe the cases of two patients with stents that mig rated into the fight ventricle and the pulmonary artery. In one patien t, we were able to successfully remove these stents by using an angiop lasts balloon with an operative extraction from the iliac vein, thereb y obviating the need for a major operative procedure.