Intra-atrial tissue plasminogen activator infusion for prosthetic valve thrombosis

Thrombosis is a well-known and life-threatening complication of prosthetic mechanical valves. Therapy typically requires medical thrombolysis or surgical thrombectomy/valve replacement. We report the case of a thrombosed atrioventricular valve in a young boy with complex congenital heart disease, which was successfully treated with direct intra-atrial infusion of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator after failed attempts at systemic therapy. We present this treatment as an alternative to conventional medical therapy. (c) 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.