In situ formation of the loop snare technique for retrieval of foreign bodies from vessels

Purpose: To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of in situ formation of the loop snare technique for retrieval of foreign bodies from vessels. Materials and methods: We retrospectively reviewed in situ formation of the loop snare technique for retrieval of foreign bodies in 6 patients. After placing the guide wire and the loop of the gooseneck snare on each side of the tubes, the soft tip of the guide wire was caught with the gooseneck snare to form a new loop structure. The foreign body was retrieved with the new loop snare by combining the gooseneck snare and the guide wire. We reviewed the application of this technique in 6 patients with fractured central venous catheters without free ends. Results: With in situ formation of the loop snare technique, the internal ruptured catheter was successfully removed from all of the 6 patients in about 2 to 4 min. There were no complications such as arrhythmia or heart valve injury in the 6 patients with the distal end of the fragment in the pulmonary artery or right atrium. Conclusion: The in situ formation loop snare technique is an effective and fast means of retrieving tubular foreign bodies without free ends from vessels. Further research is needed to investigate the practical utility of the method for retrieval of all kinds of foreign bodies.