Arterial trauma during ultrasound-guided axillary vein puncture for endocardial lead placement.

摘要

The axillary vein is an accepted route for gaining central venous access, particularly for pacing and implantable cardioverter defibrillator leads, with ultrasound guidance a useful way of facilitating venous puncture. We report a series of cases demonstrating the important complication of inadvertent arterial injury with this technique.