Abstract

A 43-year-old man with ischemic cardiomyopathy, arterial hypertension and diabetes was admitted to our hospital because of a 1-month history of fever and diaphoresis. X-ray film revealed a wire with its proximal end in the right atrium and distal end in the right common iliac vein. The foreign body was successfully removed percutaneously by femoral route using a Dormia basket. It was a 45 cm long guide wire lost during catheter placement 53 days earlier while the patient had been treated for congestive heart failure in another hospital. Transthoracic 2-dimensional echocardiographic study performed 3 days after retrieval of foreign body revealed two thrombi in the right atrium. The patient was given heparin followed by acenocoumarol and after 4 weeks of anticoagulation the thrombi completely resolved. We conclude that heparin therapy of right-sided thrombi can be safe and effective in some patients.

Keywords: heparin therapy, right heart thrombus, foreign body removal