Your inferior vena cava (IVC) is the main vein that returns blood from your lower body to your heart. You may need an IVC filter if you’re at risk for developing deep vein thrombosis (dangerous blood clots in your legs) or because you are immobile for an extended period. This filter catches blood clots before they can travel to your lungs and cause a dangerous pulmonary embolism (blockage in your lung).

The University of Miami Health System experts use removable IVC filters. If you’re no longer at risk for blood clots, they can remove your IVC filter using a minimally invasive procedure.

Candidates

You may be able to have your IVC filter removed if you’re no longer at risk for developing dangerous blood clots.

What to Expect

Your surgeon may tell you not to eat or take certain medicines, like aspirin or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), before your procedure. Always tell your doctor what medicines you’re taking, including vitamins or herbs.

You receive general anesthesia, so you’re asleep during the procedure. Your doctor also numbs the area where they will make an incision.

Once the anesthesia has taken effect, your doctor makes an incision in your neck or upper thigh. They use X-ray imaging to guide a catheter (thin, flexible tube) through the incision and next to the filter in your vena cava. Your doctor uses a tool to grab a hook on the filter, allowing them to close it and pull it back through the catheter.

After the filter is removed, your doctor removes the catheter and closes the incision with a bandage. You can go home a few hours after surgery and return to normal activities within a day or two.

Why Choose UHealth?

Leading-edge imaging care in South Florida. Our doctors are also researchers discovering new ways to improve diagnosis and treatment. That means you can get some of today’s most promising advancements through clinical trials. You benefit from the latest developments that are fast-tracked from the lab to the bedside.

Advanced, hard-to-find procedures. Our doctors are committed to caring for every patient. That’s why they offer the latest treatments, including limb salvage, endovascular grafting and thoracic outlet decompression, to improve your blood flow. 

All the care you need, from one physician. Our vascular surgeons perform a wide range of procedures so you can have the same physician for any vascular care you need as your condition changes. Whether you need a stent replaced or a vein grafted, you can always turn to the doctor you trust.

Experienced doctors, reliable results. UHealth vascular surgeons perform hundreds of stent placements, angiograms and more every year. You can rely on their experience to help you avoid complications and have a positive outcome.