Embolization of Gianturco coil into the pulmonary artery - Requiring emergency surgical intervention

We report the case of a 20-month-old girl who underwent Gianturco coil embo lization to a patent ductus arteriosus in May 1997 The coil migrated to the pulmonary artery. After unsuccessful attempts to retrieve it with snares a nd forceps, we engaged the coil with an end-hole balloon catheter and pulle d it down to the right ventricle. There it became entangled in the tricuspi d valvular apparatus and could not be moved farther. Due to concerns about sequelae, the patient was referred for surgery. Following a mid-sternotomy under cardiopulmonary bypass, we removed the coil and ligated the patent du ctus arteriosus, The patient made an uneventful recovery. A brief review of the literature is presented.