Tine after tine: a varied approach to the removal of a long-standing IVC filter

Inferior vena cava filters are important tools used to help prevent life-threatening pulmonary embolisms in hospitalized patients with contraindications to pharmacological prophylactic anticoagulation. This is a case report of a patient who had an inferior vena cava filter placed after a traumatic s...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Andrew Delozier, Melhem Ghaleb, MD, Alonso Andrade, MD
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2017-06-01
Series:Radiology Case Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S193004331630317X
Description
Summary:Inferior vena cava filters are important tools used to help prevent life-threatening pulmonary embolisms in hospitalized patients with contraindications to pharmacological prophylactic anticoagulation. This is a case report of a patient who had an inferior vena cava filter placed after a traumatic subdural hematoma. He made a complete recovery but was lost to follow-up until he presented 1825 days after filter deployment with abdominal pain discovered to be from penetration of the filter tines outside the lumen and into adjacent structures. We describe a case complicated by fibrotic tine entrapment with penetration to surrounding structures and discuss the technical approach used to free and eventually remove the long-standing filter.
ISSN:1930-0433