Percutaneous transhepatic portal embolization using newly devised catheters: preliminary report.

Two 5.5 French triple-lumen balloon catheters were devised to improve percutaneous transhepatic portal embolization (PTPE) as preoperative management of patients undergoing extensive liver resection. Using these catheters, an ipsilateral approach for embolization is achieved through a portal branch of the liver using fibrin glue mixed with Lipiodol as the embolic material. This approach proved safer and more reliable than the traditional contralateral approach: (1) The portal branch to be resected is punctured; (2) the left and right anterior portal embolization is conducted simultaneously through a single portal puncture; and (3) the catheter sheath can consequentially be removed soon after PTPE without requiring further treatment.