Coil occlusion of residual shunts after surgical closure of patent ductus arteriosus

Objective-To describe use of coil embolization to occlude residual flow through a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) after incomplete surgical ligation. Study Design-Clinical study. Animals-Dogs (n = 4) with continuous murmur after surgical ligation of PDA. Methods-After PDA ligation, residual ductal flow through the PDA was visible on color-flow Doppler examination and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter remained increased. Coil embolization by an arterial approach was performed to achieve complete occlusion of the PDA. Results-Embolization coils were delivered without complications and hemodynamically successful occlusion was achieved. Doppler-visible flow resolved in 2 dogs within 3 months after embolization. Left ventricular end-diastolic diameter indexed to body weight decreased in all dogs. Conclusions-Transcatheter coil embolization appears to be a safe and minimally invasive procedure for complete occlusion of residual PDA flow after incomplete surgical ligation. Clinical Relevance-Transcatheter coil embolization should be considered for correction of hemodynamically significant residual shunts in dogs that have incomplete PDA occlusion after open surgical ligation. (c) Copyright 2006 by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons.