Abstract

  A 28-year-old man presented with a three-day history of bilateral loin pain, fever and acute kidney injury. During routine investigations, chest x-ray incidentally revealed a foreign body projected over the mediastinum at the level of the pulmonary arteries.

  Computed tomography (CT) of the chest confirmed a coiled metallic wire extending into both pulmonary arteries. Trans-thoracic echocardiogram demonstrated a marginally dilated left ventricle and left atrium with mild mitral regurgitation, as well as a mobile, echogenic structure within the pulmonary arteries.

  Review of the patient’s medical history revealed a previous traumatic brain injury and during the course of his medical treatment, a peripheral inserted central catheter (PICC) had been inserted. The catheter had subsequently been removed by the patient. The fractured PICC was discovered incidentally three years later. The patient eventually underwent successful endovascular removal. This case highlights the importance of diligence inspection and documentation during the insertion and removal of central catheters.

Keywords: Central Venous Catheter; Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter; Embolization; Fractured Catheter; Pulmonary Arteries

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Citation

Citation: Qi Yang Lim., et al. “Asymptomatic Catheter Fracture Embolization - The Risks and Benefits of Retrieval”. 1.4 Acta Scientific Clinical Case Reports 1.4 (2020): 03-08.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2020 Qi Yang Lim., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.