Surgical Implantation of a Wireless System for Portal Vein Pressure Monitoring in a Chronic Fontan Ovine Model

The Fontan circulation is characterized by nonpulsatile pulmonary blood flow and chronic systemic venous congestion, which has been associated with several late-term complications, including Fontan-associated liver disease (FALD). Chronic animal models are a valuable tool for studying the pathophysiology underlying such disease processes. However, obtaining hemodynamic data from freely moving large animals poses several challenges. The use of wireless implantable telemetry systems may provide a novel means of acquiring pressure measurements from the hepatic circulation in real time. The following protocol describes the surgical methodology for wireless telemetry device implantation with cannulation of the portal vein in a Fontan ovine model, enabling the continuous and long-term collection of portal venous pressures and facilitating future investigations into the hemodynamic changes associated with chronic liver disease in Fontan patients.