Vena Cava Filter for Prevention of Pumonary Emboliosm

A new vena cava filter designed to prevent pulmonary embolism features a unique design that allows the device to be retrieved intravascularly for up to 10 days after deployment. This makes the filter especially useful in patients such as trauma victims who may need only short-term protection from thromboembolism or in younger patients who could benefit from not having the implant for the rest of their lives. A feasibility study is examining the safety and efficacy of the system's retrieval capabilities.

A vena cava filter traps blood clots traveling in the bloodstream and prevents them from reaching the heart or lungs where they could cause a fatal blockage or embolism. The device is implanted using a catheter moved from a percutaneous entry site into position in the vena cava. The new filter, called the Gunther Tulip Vena Cava MReye Filter and Retrieval System, is the product of Cook Incorporated (Indianapolis, IN, USA). Under an Investigational Device Exemption, the device has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for temporary use. Another version, for permanent placement, was previously cleared.

Indications for temporary placement include pulmonary thromboembolism when anticoagulation therapy is contraindicated, failure of anticoagulation therapy in thromboembolic diseases, emergency treatment following massive pulmonary embolism where anticipated benefits of conventional therapy are reduced, and for chronic, recurrent pulmonary embolism where anticoagulation therapy has failed or is contraindicated. The filter may be introduced either through the left or right femoral arteries or jugular veins.



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