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Migration of a severed transvenous pacing catheter and its successful removal

1968; Elsevier BV; Volume: 22; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/0002-9149(68)90187-2

1879-1913

Barry W. Ramo, Robert H. Peter, Yihong Kong, James J. Morris,

Cardiac Arrhythmias and Treatments

In a patient with complete A-V block with a permanent transvenous pacemaker pacing failure occurred. The insulation of the pacing catheter had eroded and resulted in ineffective pacing. Since the catheter could not be removed from the venous system, it was severed. The proximal end was fixed to the tissue in the neck at its entrance into the external jugular vein. The distal portion remained in the superior vena cava. Subsequently, the catheter dislodged from its sutures and migrated to the inferior vena cava. A safe snare was developed and used to remove the catheter through the saphenous vein. This report points out the need to remove permanent pacing catheters from the heart when they are not to be used and describes a method for removing intravascular foreign bodies.