Coronary balloon shaft fracture
Coronary balloon fracture complications
Coronary balloon shaft fracture, though extremely rare, does occur and could be challenging to treat in the setting of PCI. Two scenarios may occur. Either the shaft is broken, but still in the guiding catheter or the shaft is broken outside of the guiding catheter. After determining how and where the fracture occurred, this detailed section illustrates the management of this complication step-by-step balloon retrieval and when to decide to choose surgery or a more conservative approach.
Table of content
- Introduction
- Management overview
- Additional links
- Case library
Introduction
While coronary balloon shaft fracture is increasingly rare, it can occur, and this section looks at the various scenarios involved in its retrieval. Panning fluoroscopy can help in determining whether the balloon shaft is within the guiding catheter or outside the guiding catheter. All approaches such as balloon trapping technique, snare technique and more are also illustrated in this section.
Management overview
- Balloon trapping technique: Balloon trapping or anchoring techniques, which can be challenging are explained in this section.
- Snare technique - Trifold: Often a favoured technique especially in the in the case of balloon shaft fracture, the use of a snare requires careful planning. Discover more here!
- Snare technique - GooseNeck: When retrieving a fractured balloon in the coronary artery, the snare technique is feasible with a GooseNeck snare and it is easier when the fragment is located proximally in a coronary artery. Discover more about this technique here!
Case library
Case study on balloon trapping technique by C. Wilken-Tergau: Lost in left main
Case study on basic trapping technique by R. Hammami: Unusual PCI complication
Case study on snaring technique by S. Suttipongkeat: Broken balloon in left main
Case study by T. Warisawa et al.: Retrievel with GuideLiner
Case study by K. Partani: Retrieval of broken shaft
Disclaimer
This case report does not reflect the opinion of PCR or PCRonline, nor does it engage their responsibility.
