Journal of the Chinese Medical Association
Volume 70, Issue 5 , Pages 213-214, May 2007

Entrapment of a Swan–Ganz Catheter

  • Lung-Ching Chen

      Affiliations

    • Intensive Care Unit, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • ,
  • Po-Hsun Huang

      Affiliations

    • National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to: Dr Po-Hsun Huang, Division of Cardiology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, 201, Section 2, Shih-Pai Road, Taipei 112, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Received 4 October 2006; accepted 15 March 2007.

Article Outline

Failure to withdraw a catheter is related primarily to catheter entrapment or knotting. Placement of a Swan-Ganz catheter is associated with various complications, one of which is entrapment. Entrapment of a Swan-Ganz catheter in the heart, vena cava, or pulmonary artery is a very rare and serious complication that may lead to life-threatening complications if not treated appropriately. Most reported cases of catheter entrapment have been associated with surgical sutures, artificial valves, or abnormal cardiac anatomy. Here we report a rare case of Swan-Ganz catheter entrapment resulting from inserting an excessive length of Swan-Ganz catheter into the heart. The catheter was removed smoothly under fluoroscopic guidance.

Key Words:  entrapment , Swan-Ganz catheter

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References 

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PII: S1726-4901(09)70360-0

doi:10.1016/S1726-4901(09)70360-0

Journal of the Chinese Medical Association
Volume 70, Issue 5 , Pages 213-214, May 2007

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