Coil Occlusion of Elderly Ductus Arteriosus

Surgical management of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in the elderly population is complicated by a fragile aortic wall due to atheromatous lesions, the presence of friable tissue at the surgical site, and calcification of the ductus. A viable option for the elderly patient is transcatheter closure of the PDA using a synthetic plug. Transcatheter coil occlusion has been shown to be an effective nonsurgical technique for closure of the persistently PDA in a younger population. We report a case of a 75 year old woman who had complete occlusion of her PDA with a single Gianturco coil after recurrence of her ductus 3 years post surgical ligation. The successful transcatheter treatment is presented with emphasis on the simple and safe technique utilized. (c)1999 by CVRR, Inc.