Migration of a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) stent: evaluation by transesophageal echocardiography.

Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunting (TIPS) is a procedure for end-stage liver disease that involves angiographically guided placement of an intrahepatic expandable metal stent. Mechanical complications of intrahepatic stent placement have been reported, including stent migration to the central venous circulation. This report describes a patient who had embolization of a stent after a TIPS procedure, with subsequent failed percutaneous attempts at stent removal. Transesophageal echocardiography documented the stent caught in the tricuspid valve and apparatus, with its distal end projecting into the right ventricular cavity.