Percutaneous transfemoral retrieval of the "runaway" ventriculoatrial shunt.

A 22-year-old man with a ventriculoatrial shunt was admitted to hospital for investigation of headache, nausea and vomiting. During a procedure done to convert the ventriculoatrial shunt to the ventriculoperitoneal type, the shunt tubing was inadvertently cut in the neck. The atrial end was found to have migrated into the right atrium. It was recovered by percutaneous cardiac catheterization through the femoral vein. The patient tolerated the procedure well. The authors believe that this method of retrieval is easier and carries less operative risk than previously reported methods.