Percutaneous ventricular assist device to rescue a patient with profound shock from a thrombosed prosthetic mitral valve.

The TandemHeart is a percutaneous ventricular assist device that has been approved to provide hemodynamic support in high-risk patients undergoing cardiac procedures, including percutaneous coronary interventions and aortic balloon valvuloplasty. Limited data exists for its role in stabilizing cardiogenic shock secondary to prosthetic valve dysfunction. In conclusion, we report the first case, to our knowledge, of profound cardiogenic shock secondary to an acutely thrombosed mechanical mitral valve in which the use of the TandemHeart was instrumental in rescuing a critically ill young female who made a full recovery.