**10. References**


**11** 

*2RIKEN* 

*Japan* 

**Numerical Analysis of the** 

*1Kyushu Institute of Technology* 

*3Yamaguchi University* 

**Mechanical Properties of a Vena Cava Filter** 

*4National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology* 

Kazuto Takashima1,2, Koji Mori3, Kiyoshi Yoshinaka4 and Toshiharu Mukai2

When anticoagulants are contraindicated for the venous thromboembolism therapy and thromboembolism recurs, a vena cava filter is inserted percutaneously into a major vein in order to prevent blood clots from entering the lungs (Ando & Kuribayashi, 2000; Streiff, 2000) (Fig. 1). The inferior vena cava filter is a mesh structure designed to capture blood clots while not impeding blood flow. This filter is inserted using an introducer catheter from either the femoral or jugular vein and is fixed by a hook attached to the tip of a wire. Several

Ideally, the filter should capture blood clots efficiently while not impeding the blood flow. Moreover, the filter should not move in the blood vessel after deployment and should pass smoothly through the slim introducer catheter. Although insertion appears to be a safe and effective method by which to prevent the recurrence of pulmonary embolism, patients in whom the filter has become tilted may experience pulmonary embolism recurrence because of a decrease in the thrombus-trapping performance of the filter (Nara et al., 1995; Rogers et

**1. Introduction**

filters have been designed to lyse captured clots.

Fig. 1. Placement of the inferior vena cava filter.

