A 72-year-old man underwent aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass graft using cardiopulmonary bypass with right axillary artery cannulation. After undraping, petechial and subcutaneous hemorrhage with blister formations were found in right upper extremity. Axillary artery cannula was considered to compress right subclavian and disturb venous return in the right subclavian vein, wh...

We report a 54-year-old woman with the history of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who was admitted to our hospital because of volume overload. Due to long-term use of peripheral veins and arteriovenous fistula (AVF) failure, central venous catheterization was the only choice for hemodialysis. She developed right upper extremiti’s pain and paresis during hemodialysis. A posteroanterior chest x-ra...

Central vein cannulation is one of the most commonly performed procedures in intensive care. Traditionally, the jugular and subclavian vein are recommended as the first choice option. Nevertheless, these attempts are not always obtainable for critically ill patients. For this reason, the axillary vein seems to be a rational alternative approach. In this narrative review, we evaluate the usefuln...

Paget-Schroetter syndrome (PSS) is thrombosis of the deep veins draining the upper extremity due to anatomic abnormalities of the thoracic outlet that cause subclavian compression and subsequent thrombosis, leading to thrombus formation in the subclavian vein. Vigorous arm activity in sports is a known risk factor. Here, we report a case of Paget-Schroetter syndrome in a 31-year-old male non-pr...

Young healthy women without a genetic predisposition are considered to be at low risk for deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary emboli. We present an unusual case of pulmonary embolism in a 21-year-old female competitive rower likely caused by oral contraception and trauma of the axillary-subclavian vein by extrinsic compression due to repetitive arm movements.

We present a case of a 50-year-old patient with DDD pacing failure who underwent atrial lead extraction. The lead was implanted 15 years ago, and 4 months ago it dislodged into the subclavian vein following a fracture. The lead was removed via the femoral vein approach using a Cook Medical device (Byrd Femoral Workstation, Dotter basket) and pigtail catheter.

Figure 1: The echo-colour doppler and CT show the complications of an extreme endovascular treatment. (A) Occlusion of the right jugular vein, patency of the trunk of the brachiocephalic and subclavian vein and thrombosis of the left jugular vein and the brachiocephalic trunk with residual stenosis of 70%. (B) The extreme treatment and endovascular stenting (CT view). (C) Occlusion of the right...

We describe two cases in which a permanent pacemaker was implanted via the femoral vein, because the cephalic and subclavian veins were not patent. The technique and its indications, advantages and potential complications are reviewed.