The nonsurgical retrieval of intracardiac foreign bodies--an international survey.

An international survey of nonsurgical retrieval of intracardiac foreign bodies provided data on 180 published and unpublished cases. The data was analyzed to evaluate the respective merits and drawbacks of the 3 basic retrieval techniques, the snare, the wire basket, and the endoscopy forceps, the routes and methods of insertion, the success rate, and the complications. Eighty percent of foreign bodies were polyethylene central venous pressure catheters, cut in two by the needle introducer. The site of lodgement of these fragments was predictable and determined by the site of entry and length of the fragment. The basic retrieval instruments and their modifications are described. Operating instructions are detailed together with adjunct methods of repositioning fragments for easier retrieval. Factors associated with the small percentage of unsuccessful retrieval attempts include fragments totally in the distal pulmonary artery, extravascular lodging sites, chronically-implanted fragments, and pacemaker-catheter fragments. For the vast majority of cases, however, these simple and uncomplicated techniques have been highly successful and widely utilized in the nonsurgical retrieval of intracardiac foreign bodies.