CASE REPORTS   

The Journal of Cardiovascular Surgery 2012 December;53(6):821-3

Copyright © 2012 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Pulmonary vein stenosis requiring lobectomy after radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation

Libretti L., Ciriaco P., Zannini P. ✉

Department of Thoracic Surgery, San Raffaele University and Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy

Pulmonary vein stenosis is one of the potential complications of radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation. This complication is generally treated by transcatheter techniques using balloon angioplasty or stent implantation. We report a case of a 17-year-old boy with acquired left inferior pulmonary vein stenosis following radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation, conditioning recurrent pneumonia. Despite three attempts of vein dilation by means of angioplasty, the stenosis always recurred with worsening of symptoms. A left inferior lobectomy was then performed and after 33 months the patient is well and with no symptoms.