Han Wang1, Feng Zhang1, Yanfeng Meng1, Tong Zhang1, Patrick Willis1, Stephanie Soriano1, Erik Ray1, Karim Valji1, Guixiang Zhang2, Xiaoming Yang1
1Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States; 2Radiology, Shanghai First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
We investigated a new technique of MRI-guided intraTIPS local agent delivery to inhibit TIPS stenosis. Six domestic pigs underwent TIPS procedure. Before placement of the stent, a custom-made microporous delivery balloon catheter was placed into the shunt, and then Motexafin gadolinium (MGd) mixed with trypan blue dye was locally delivered under dynamic MRI monitoring. The MGd/blue penetration was displayed, and the increasing of the local MR signal intensity was observed. MRI manifestations correlated well with subsequent histological examination. This technique is feasible in an animal mode, and may open new avenues to improve the long-term patency of TIPS.