Left ventricular venting through the right subclavian artery access during peripheral extracorporeal life support

Abstract

The use of peripheral extracorporeal life support during refractory cardiac arrest sometimes exposes the patient to left ventricular dilatation requiring venting. We report here a simple technique for LV venting by a cannula inserted through right subclavian artery and positioned in the left ventricle. © 2013 The Author. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.