Feasibility of concomitant vacuum-assisted removal of lead-related vegetations and cardiac implantable electronic device extraction.

Background: Cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) infections associated with large, mobile vegetation adds to the complexity of lead extraction and is associated with significant patient morbidity and mortality.

Objective: To show the feasibility of concomitant cardiovascular implantable electronic device extraction and vacuum-assisted removal of lead-related vegetations.

Methods: This is a single-center retrospective case series of consecutive patients with persistent bacteremia, sepsis, or endocarditis despite medical therapy who have vegetations >2 cm and subsequently underwent immediate CIED lead extraction after debulking with vacuum-assisted suction.

Results: Eight patients underwent successful removal of 17 leads immediately after debulking of vegetations with vacuum-assisted device suction. Debulking procedure was not successful in 1 patient due to inability to direct the vacuum suction device into proper position. There were no intraprocedure complications related to the vacuum-assisted debulking. One patient required open sternotomy for tear of the coronary sinus ostium related to extraction of a left ventricular pacing electrode. There was no mortality within 30 days of the procedure.

Conclusions: Based upon these clinical results, it is feasible for patients with infected CIED systems that have large right-sided vegetations to undergo vacuum-assisted debulking then immediately followed by percutaneous CIED removal in whom surgical removal is considered high risk.