Fritz Pinterits

Percutaneous extraction of centrally embolized foreign bodies: a report of 16 cases.

Sixteen cases of centrally embolized foreign bodies are reported (eight catheter fragments, two guide wires, four pacemaker electrodes, one ventriculo-atrial shunt, one Port-A-Cath catheter). In all patients only the Dormia basket was used. Foreign body extraction was successful in all patients except one, in which removal of a pacemaker electrode from the myocardium failed. Technical aspects as well as complications of percutaneous foreign body extraction are discussed.

An unusual cause of haemobilia.

Haemobilia, a communication between blood vessels and the biliary tract, is usually secondary to trauma, vascular disease, inflammatory disorders, gallstones or tumours (Hirsch et al, 1982). An extremely rare cause is presented, namely tuberculosis, presumably related to erosion of the hepatic artery and formation of a pseudoaneurysm. A 16-year-old girl was admitted with haematemesis and melaena. The patient had been well until the age of 14 years, when she experienced symptoms of fever, night sweats and fatigue and was diagnosed as having pneumonia.

Retrieval of Adherent, Centrally Embolized Foreign Bodies: Common and Advanced Methods

Percutaneous removal of centrally embolized foreign bodies left in situ is of utmost importance because of the high mortality. With the usual meth ods, however, removal is possible only if one end of the embolizate is freely accessible. In this report the authors present the common tech niques and a new method permitting the shifting of fixed foreign bodies into a position where they may be grasped and removed by snare or Dormia basket.

Chest Radiograph in the Acute Traumatic Rupture of the Aorta

The authors tried to determine the validity of sixteen well-known signs indicating an acute traumatic rup ture of the aorta on plain chest radio graphs of 22 patients. Angiograph ically 11 of the patients had a tear at the aortic isthmus. It turned out that seven of the sixteen signs (widened mediastinum, loss of the aortic knob contour, opacification of the aorto- pulmonary window, bulging of the vascular pedicle predominantly to the left, left apical cap, depression of the left main stem bronchus, and dis placement of the right paraspinous interspace) are of great diagnostic value.

[Fibrinolytic therapy of thromboembolic vascular occlusions: primary success rates and long-term results].

A prospective study of the results of fibrinolytic therapy in 87 patients was carried out with particular reference to the type of fibrinolytic agent. The primary success rate using urokinase was 78%, which was markedly greater than the 44% success rate when using streptokinase. An attempt was also made to evaluate the effect of other factors, such as the extent and duration of the occlusion. Long term results, as might have been expected, were directly related to the primary success rate. If fibrinolytic therapy resulted in fairly normal vasculature, the long-term results were satisfactory in 79%, whereas unsatisfactory reconstruction of the vascular bed produced a satisfactory long-term result in only 30%.

Olbert dilatation catheter system: complication due to inexpert handling.

A complication of inexpert handling of the Olbert catheter system is presented. The balloon was inflated while the clamp at the proximal end of the catheter was closed. This resulted in kinking of the distal end of the catheter within the balloon. Difficulty in catheter removal resulted but was overcome by an improvised coaxial sheath technique.