Spontaneous intrajugular migration of long-term central venous access catheters.

Two patients with long-term central venous access catheters introduced via the right subclavian vein demonstrated catheter migration into the right internal jugular vein several months after satisfactory catheter placement. One patient developed internal jugular vein thrombosis, which was treated with direct infusion of urokinase before catheter removal. In the other patient, the catheter was repositioned by using an intravascular snare loop, which was introduced via the femoral vein. In the first patient, an interim chest radiograph suggested the mechanism by which the catheter had migrated and provided a clue for early detection of catheter migration.