Case Report
Copyright ©2012 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Radiol. May 28, 2012; 4(5): 224-227
Published online May 28, 2012. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v4.i5.224
Portal vein thrombosis following percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography-An unusual presentation of Prothrombin (Factor II) gene mutation
Ian M Brennan, Muneeb Ahmed
Ian M Brennan, Muneeb Ahmed, Section of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, United States
Author contributions: Brennan IM and Ahmed M performed manuscript conception, writing and revision and final approval.
Correspondence to: Ian M Brennan, MD, Section of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 1 Deaconess Road, Boston, MA 02215, United States. ibrennan@bidmc.harvard.edu
Telephone: +1-617-7542523 Fax: +1-617-7542525
Received: December 10, 2011
Revised: April 5, 2012
Accepted: April 12, 2012
Published online: May 28, 2012
Abstract

Portal vein thrombosis is an uncommonly reported complication of percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC). A thorough review of the available literature shows no reported cases. In this case, a 29 year old female presented on two separate occasions with portal vein thrombosis following PTC without drain placement. This unusual complication of image guided percutaneous biliary access is unreported in the literature and prompted evaluation of the patient’s coagulation parameters. A thrombophilia screen demonstrated a mutation in the Prothrombin (Factor II) gene. A thorough literature review shows no reported cases of portal vein thrombosis following percutaneous biliary access, is an unusual complication, and should raise suspicion of an underlying pro-coagulant state.

Keywords: Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography, Portal vein thrombosis, Prothrombin gene mutation, Hereditary thrombophilia