Personal experiences in direct ultrasound-guided injection of thrombin into the lumen of pseudoaneurysm as a method of treatment in case of iatrogenic femoral artery damage

BACKGROUND: Pseudoaneurysms constitute a quite common complication of procedures requiring puncture of the common femoral artery. The risk factors of the condition include: obesity, arterial hypertension, sex (more prevalent in males) as well as antithrombotic therapy. MATERIAL/METHODS: The US-guided injection of thrombin into the pseudoaneurysm lumen was performed in patients referred from the Department of Invasive Cardiology who had undergone coronarography or coronary angioplasty. Pseudoaneurysms constituted the complication of common femoral artery canulation. After setting the diagnosis of pseudoaneurysm by means of Doppler ultrasound, patients with large pseudoaneurysms of volume exceeding 10 mm were qualified for thrombin injection. Generally, 33 patients underwent the treatment. In 3 cases – due to the presence of multiocular pseudoaneurysm – thrombin was administered twice. RESULTS: Taking into account the safety of the procedure, ultimately 33 patients were qualified for thrombin administration, in whom aneurism of diameter exceeding 10 mm was diagnosed. In 3 patients with aneurysm of less than 10mm, only a compression band was used prophylactically. In one case, because of a considerable oedema surrounding the tissue, as well as deep location of the aneurysm in the groin, thrombin treatment was not given due to technical reasons. In 30 cases, single administration of thrombin was effective and resulted in a complete thrombosis of the pseudoaneurism lumen within a couple of seconds following thrombin injection. In 3 patients with multicellular aneurysm, thrombin was given twice, resulting in a total obliteration of the pseudoaneurysm in two cases only. No complications were observed after the performed procedures. No recanalisation of pseudoaneurysms was demonstrated in follow-up examinations. CONCLUSIONS: 1. Direct thrombin injection into the pseudoaneurysm lumen can constitute an alternative method of treatment for open surgical techniques. 2. The procedure is highly effective, cheap and minimally invasive.