In the event of injury to the vena cava, the surgeon's goal is to control the bleeding and then repair the vascular damage. Given the wide range of lesions observed, the repair step has not been standardized. There are a few case reports of simple venoplasty or cavocaval bypass with a polytetrafluoroethylene graft. The present report introduces another treatment option for total avulsion of the suprahepatic inferior vena cava when a lack of remnant venous tissue below the heart prevents direct repair: cavo-atrial bypass with a polytetrafluoroethylene graft.
Keywords: Cavo-atrial bypass; Inferior vena cava avulsion; Inferior vena cava injury.
© The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.