[Use of autologous femoral vein in superior vena cava thrombosis. Case report and review of the literature].

We report on a 52-year old male patient who underwent implantation of an insulin pump because he had diabetes and in whom superior vena cava syndrome developed as a long-term complication. After unsuccessful lysis therapy superficial femoral vein was implanted to form a bypass from the internal jugular vein to the right atrium. The postoperative course was uneventful from the aspects of both the bypass and the leg after explantation of the superficial femoral vein. The bypass is still patent 7 months after the operation, and the patient has no symptoms. Autogenous superficial femoral vein can be used successfully in the reconstruction of large venous vessels. It should be the graft of choice for young patients with benign diseases. We compare our result and those obtained with different substitutes described in the literature that have been used for reconstruction in superior vena cava syndrome.