There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.
Abstract
Introduction
Extraction of intravascular implantable cardiac rhythm device leads can be challenging.
This report details the extraction of a lead that had been implanted long ago via
the supraclavicular approach.
Case report
KEY TEACHING POINTS
•
During procedural planning for lead extraction, it is important to consider the implantation
technique that was used.
•
Although infrequently encountered today, the internal jugular approach to cardiac
lead implantation may complicate later device extraction.
•
The ease and safety of extraction of leads with a supraclavicular/internal jugular
course may be improved by straightening the extravascular portion of the lead.
A 68-year-old man with a right-sided pacemaker originally implanted as a ventricular-only
device more than 25 years before presentation and later upgraded to a dual-chamber
device was admitted with a fever. Blood cultures grew methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus. Transesophageal echocardiography revealed a vegetation on a pacing lead. The
patient was not pacemaker dependent. Because of persistent gram-positive bacteremia,
he was referred for extraction of the pacing system.
Chest radiography raised concern for an unusual course of the ventricular pacing lead
(Figure 1). We suspected that the lead had been implanted via a supraclavicular approach.
At the time of the procedure, rotational fluoroscopy (Figure 2 and Online Supplemental
Video) verified that the lead coursed over the clavicle, with likely vascular entry
at the right internal jugular vein. Of note, the lead appeared to have a passive fixation
mechanism. Given the passive fixation and the age of the lead, we anticipated the
need for advanced extraction techniques, including laser sheath application and/or
snaring.
The pacemaker pocket was entered and the generator removed. The active fixation atrial
lead was removed with simple traction. We then undertook extraction of the ventricular
lead. The lead was dissected from the extensively fibrotic pacemaker pocket. No model
number or serial number could be identified on the lead. A small supraclavicular incision
was made in the skin overlying the palpable lead (Figure 3A). In the search for any
supraclavicular anchoring device (eg, suture and/or suture sleeve), the surrounding
connective tissue was dissected away, but no such anchor was found. The lead was transected
proximal to the thick connector “boot.” The remaining lead body was brought into the
supraclavicular incision using blunt dissection and gentle traction.
Once the lead had been tunneled to the supraclavicular position, a lead locking device
was deployed. The lead could not be extracted with simple traction. A 12Fr laser sheath
(GlideLight; Spectranetics Inc, Colorado Springs, CO) was passed over the ventricular
lead using a supraclavicular approach (Figure 3, Figure 4).
Using traction/countertraction and short bursts of laser energy at a pulse rate of
40 Hz, the sheath was advanced to the tip of the lead, which was then extracted without
incident.
Discussion
This case demonstrates the importance of preoperative preparation before implantable
cardiac electronic device extraction. Through recognition of the unusual course of
this implanted lead, the operative approach was modified to facilitate uneventful
extraction. The key aspect of this modification was the supraclavicular incision and
superior deflection of the lead’s free end, thereby allowing direct removal of the
lead.
First introduced in 1965 by Yoffa, the supraclavicular approach to pacemaker lead
insertion may be useful for overcoming subclavian vein obstruction during device upgrades
or when infraclavicular access is otherwise difficult.1, 2, 3 However, this technique
may be associated with a higher rate of subsequent lead dislodgment and may require
procedural modification when device extraction is required. In contemporary practice,
the supraclavicular approach is now seen rarely, largely having been replaced by the
infraclavicular approach to the axillary–subclavian system.
The angulated entry to the superior vena cava (SVC) is a common site of vascular injury
during extraction from either side.
4
Because of the more acute angle at the junction of the subclavian/innominate vein
and SVC, extraction of right-sided devices may be more difficult and/or hazardous
than similar extractions from the left side. In our case, the lead’s supraclavicular
course may have made extraction actually safer than the usual subclavian trajectory,
once the unusual course of the lead was recognized and addressed. Because the course
from the SVC to the right ventricle is a straight line, the laser sheath could be
passed more easily once the challenging angle was removed. Perhaps even a nonpowered
extraction sheath would have sufficed. For this reason, some authors advocate proactive
conversion to the transjugular approach in challenging right-sided extractions.
5
The outcomes of patients requiring emergent surgical or endovascular intervention during transvenous lead extraction (TLE) have not been well characterized.
We report our 15 years experience of a mechanical single-sheath technique with a multiple venous entry-site approach. We evaluated the effectiveness and safety of this technique in implantable defibrillator (ICD) lead extraction and investigated the potential association between clinical and lead-related factors and procedural complexity.
[0005]Ochsner Medical Center, New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Ochsner Clinical School, Queensland
University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana
Author notes
[*
]Address reprint requests and correspondence: Dr. Daniel P. Morin, Ochsner Medical Center, 1514 Jefferson Highway, New Orleans
LA 70118
dmorin@
123456ochsner.org