Letters To The Editor
Copyright ©2013 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Jun 14, 2013; 19(22): 3528-3530
Published online Jun 14, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i22.3528
Reducing risk of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt using ultrasound guided single needle pass
Sum Leong, Hong Kuan Kok, Pradeep Govender, William Torreggiani
Sum Leong, Hong Kuan Kok, Pradeep Govender, William Torreggiani, Department of Radiology, Tallaght Hospital, Dublin 24, Ireland
Author contributions: All the authors contributed to the writing and the revision of this letter.
Correspondence to: Sum Leong, MB, MRCS, MSc, FFRRCSI, EDIR, Department of Radiology, Tallaght Hospital, Tallaght, Dublin 24, Ireland. leong81@gmail.com
Telephone: +353-85-7214977
Received: February 26, 2013
Revised: April 11, 2013
Accepted: May 7, 2013
Published online: June 14, 2013
Processing time: 108 Days and 15.6 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) for complications of portal hypertension is commonly formed by accessing a portal vein branch from a metal cannula wedged in a hepatic vein. A number of serious procedural complications including bleeding and perforation following TIPS have been described. We feel the adoption of techniques such as ours and that of other authors described in the literature using an ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic approach with a small caliber needle provides a safer and less traumatic procedure and should reduce complications of bleeding and almost completely eliminate the risk of liver laceration.