[Treatment of acute pulmonary hemorrhage in a patient with pulmonary atresia and ventricular septal defect by coil embolization of a systemico-pulmonary collateral artery].

Pulmonary hemorrhage due to rupture of pulmonary arteries causes significant morbidity and mortality in the natural history of older patients with pulmonary atresia and ventricular septal defect. The only therapeutical option for patients with persisting pulmonary hemorrhage was surgical resection of the involved pulmonary segments. In this case report we describe the successful termination of an acute pulmonary hemorrhage in a 9-year-old patient by coil-embolization of a systemicopulmonary collateral artery, which provided additional blood supply to the left upper-lobe segments. The hemorrhage ceased within 24 h and has not recurred during a follow-up period of 7 months. In our opinion, the success of the embolization can be attributed to a reduction of the perfusion pressure and a normalization of the arterial blood flow in the affected lung segments.