[Chronic pain due to a retained guidewire following endovascular laser therapy for varicose veins].

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  • 14 June 2008
    • journal article
    • case report
    • Vol. 152  (24) , 1387-90
    • PMID:18664218
Abstract
A 37-year-old woman was referred to the emergency room with pain in the right hemithorax and increasing dyspnoea. She also suffered from aggravating diffuse chronic pain in the body. The pain had started one year previously following endovascular laser therapy (EVLT) for varicose veins at a private clinic. Radiography showed metal-like wires throughout the body, even in her heart. She underwent transluminal percutaneous intervention to remove the guide wire-fragments and a thoracotomy for a subsequent tamponade of the heart. Although most studies report that EVLT is a safe therapeutic option for treating varicose veins and that complications are mostly self-limiting, this case shows that in inexperienced hands this procedure can cause severe iatrogenic damage.