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The procedure is usually performed on an awake patient. After injection of local anaesthetic, a large vein, usually in the groin is cannulated with a catheter and the catheter is fed up through the major veins to the heart. The progress is monitored on by an echocardiogram.
The catheter is passed through the PFO and the first part of the closure device is deployed. The catheter is then withdrawn slightly and the decond part of the device is deployed. The device then sits either side of the PFO mych like a cuff link through the hole in a cuff. The catheter is then withdrawn.
The patient is usually allowed home the same day. After a few days, cells migrate over the device and cover it, incorporating it into the septum between the two atria.
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