Surgical Removal of A Broken Intravascular Ultrasonography Catheter for PCI Followed by Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass

Abstract

A 73-year-old woman underwent percutaneous coronary intervention of a diagonal branch. While removing an intravascular ultrasonography (IVUS) catheter, the outer tube was torn off, leaving only the outer tube, including the marker, in the guiding sheath. The tip of the IVUS remnant was identified by fluoroscopy and epicardial echocardiography. An incision of 5 mm in length was made in the distal part of the stent on the diagonal branch using a stabilizer. The IVUS remnant was pulled out distally. The IVUS catheter of approximately 30 cm in length was removed without resistance. Since there was no blood coming from the proximal side of the incision, an off-pump aorto-coronary artery bypass using a saphenous vein graft was performed. The patient was discharged from the hospital on postoperative day 8 without any complications.