Removal of a broken venous port from the pulmonary artery: a case series.

Abstract

The use of venous access ports carries a risk of complications, including catheter fracture with migration of catheter fragments into the pulmonary arteries. Experience in removing broken catheters is limited and there are no special tools. We present 4 cases of catheter removal using the available lassos/lasso catheter and tools designed for transvenous lead extraction and coronary sinus lead implantation via a femoral and subclavian approach. All four procedures were successful and without complications.