BACKGROUND The comparative effectiveness of percutaneous closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) plus medical therapy versus medical therapy alone for cryptogenic stroke is uncertain. OBJECTIVES The authors performed the first pooled analysis of individual participant data from completed randomized trials comparing PFO closure versus medical therapy in patients with cryptogenic stroke. METHOD...

We describe the interdisciplinary management of a 59-year old man with ischaemic cardiomyopathy on a HeartMate II left ventricular assist device (LVAD) and temporary right extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as a bridge-to-heart transplantation. He suffered refractory hypoxaemia due to massive right-to-left shunting by a patent foramen ovale (PFO), diagnosed after weaning off of temporar...

BACKGROUND Percutaneous transcatheter closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) in cryptogenic stroke is an alternative to medical therapy. There is still debate on different outcome for each currently available device. The impact of residual shunting after PFO-closure on recurrent arterial embolism is unknown. - AIMS (i) To evaluate the prevalence of residual interatrial shunting after device- c...

We report the case of a 59-year-old male smoker with hypertension and dyslipidemia who, in 2007, was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and patent foramen ovale (PFO) after suffering a cerebral ischemic attack in the region of the middle cerebral artery. The high risk of a further cerebral ischemic attack (score of 3 on the CHADS 2) was an indication for long-term oral anticoagulation. However,...

A 70-year-old male patient was referred for closure of patent foramen ovale after recurrent transient cerebral ischaemia. A 25-mm Amplatzer PFO occluder was implanted. Thereafter and due to his age and a history of chest pain during the past six months, we performed coronary angiograms which demonstrated tight stenosis of the distal part and significant stenosis of the proximal part of the righ...

Patent foramen ovale (PFO) may complicate left ventricular assist device (LVAD) therapy. We report a 70-year-old male with a HeartMate II LVAD at increased risk for thromboembolic stroke secondary to a PFO with right-to-left shunting and a large mobile thrombus on his right atrial pacing lead. Via percutaneous intervention, a 25 mm Cribiform Amplatzer atrial septal occluder was successfully dep...

OBJECTIVE To review our experience with, and profile the safety and efficacy of, the Amplatzer PFO (patent foramen ovale) occluder (APO) and Amplatzer septal occluder (ASO) used to close PFO and/or atrial septal defect (ASD) in patients with paradoxical embolism (PE). PATIENTS AND METHODS Between April 1998 and November 2002, 103 patients at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn, and Scottsdale,...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Patent foramen ovale (PFO) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of cryptogenic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) due to paradoxical embolism, and in the pathogenesis of migraine. This paper reports the intermediate and long-term results of transcatheter closure of PFO associated with cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs), TIAs and migraine, using the Amplatzer PF...

OBJECTIVES The present study was conducted to determine the safety of the transcatheter closure of a patent foramen ovale (PFO) in patients with cryptogenic cerebral ischemia and the midterm follow-up of recurrent thromboembolic events after interventional PFO closure. BACKGROUND Current therapeutic options for stroke prevention in patients with PFO and a history of thromboembolic events incl...

We report on a 16-year-old boy after an event of cardiac arrest and initial treatment with a veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenator (ECMO). After a short stabilisation period a biventricular assist device (BVAD, Thoratec) was implanted. Although the BVAD was functioning well, the patient showed persisting hypoxemia. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed a patent foramen ovale with a...