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Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) and implantable venous access devices with an attached catheter such as a Port-A-Cath are common types of central venous catheters (CVC) that are used to deliver chemotherapy and other medications. Subclavian vein (SVC) access for CVC, although widely practiced, presents risks for catheter complications such as the compression of the catheter in the space anterior to the first rib and posterior to the clavicle (1). This compression is rated on a scale of grades 0 to 3 pinch-off syndrome (POS). Grade 0 exhibits a regular catheter course without luminal narrowing; grade 1 exhibits an altered catheter course without luminal narrowing; grade 2 exhibits luminal narrowing; and grade 3 exhibits catheter fracture (2). POS may present with pain or swelling of the shoulder region but patients may also be asymptomatic (3). Additionally, POS can be an incidental finding seen on a chest X-ray (4). Regardless, clinicians should suspect a possible POS if there is patient-reported pain or an abnormal catheter pathway seen on a chest X-ray. Further investigation via radiographic or fluoroscopic evaluation is warranted. Early detection of POS requires only catheter replacement but failure to intervene may result in life-threatening complications caused by catheter fragmentation. In such cases, pieces of the catheter may break off to cause ventricular tachycardia, vessel embolization, and cardiac perforation (5-7). In this report, we discuss two cases of grade 3 POS that were detected based on clinical and radiographic signs.

Autogenous arteriovenous vascular access with an arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is the gold standard for attaining long-term hemodialysis vascular access (1). When compared to prosthetic arteriovenous grafts (AVGs) and tunneled hemodialysis catheters, an AVF has less frequent rates of thrombosis, stenosis, and infection.

Congenital heart defects that present earlier in life and involving a hypoplastic ventricle are sometimes channeled towards single-ventricle repair because of anatomical or logistic challenges (1). With the single-ventricular repair, the final result is the shunting of venous return directly into the pulmonary artery and the utilization of the functioning ventricle for systemic circulation (2). Though singleventricular repair has remarkable short-term results, long-term survivors experience declines in exercise tolerance, heart failure, arrhythmias, and thromboembolic complications (3). Given long-term functional and survival advantages of a two-ventricle circulation, exploring feasibility of biventricular repair is essential for improving prognosis. However, a successful biventricular repair requires sufficiently functioning ventricles to sustain a balanced flow through the pulmonary and systemic circuit. To evaluate the functional adequacy of the ventricle with hypoplasia, echocardiogram is conventionally used.