Endovascular retrieval of two 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 results after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty. Dislodgement of venous stents with an embolization into the right cavities; or the pulmonary artery, however, is one of the most feared complications of this procedure. Percutaneous removal of these migrated stents is an appealing method of replacing more invasive operative intervention with cardiopulmonary bypass, which may be very hazardous in these often severely ill patients. We describe the cases of two patients with stents that migrated into the fight ventricle and the pulmonary artery. In one patient, we were able to successfully remove these stents by using an angioplasts balloon with an operative extraction from the iliac vein, thereby obviating the need for a major operative procedure.