Invasive intervention was performed on 5 cases that diagnosed as pulmonary embolism (PE) at Depart- ment of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, School of Medicine of Atatürk University. Four of the cases were female, l was male and the avarage age was 31.2 (22-37). Two cases had undergone major gynecologic operations, and other cases had iliofemoral vein trombosis. it was diagnosed clinicilally massive pulmonary embolism (MPE) in three cases, and pulmonary microembolism in 2 cases. in three cases with MPE, it was urgently performed pulmonary embolectomy using extracor- poreal circulation (ECC). A Greenfield filter was inserted into vena cava inferior (VCI) via right iliofemoral vein in the two cases with pulmonary microemoblism.
Two of cases with MPE applied pulmonary embolectomy died for the reason of peroperative cardiopulmonary failure, while another patient had getting back to normal. During three years of follow-up, PE was not recurred in two cases applied Greenfield filter.
We conclude that, prophylactically filter application to VCI in pulmonary microembolism and pulmonary embolectomy using ECC in early period of life-threatening MPE may be a life saver procedure.