BRTO is safe and efficacious for gastric varices, and current best evidence suggests that BRTO could be considered as therapy for patients with gastric varices.

No abstract

While balloon-assisted retrograde transvenous obliteration (BRTO) has been used for two decades in Asia for the management of gastric variceal bleeding, it is still an emerging therapy elsewhere. Given the shunt closure brought about by the procedure, BRTO has also been used for the management of portosystemic encephalopathy with promising results. Modified versions of BRTO have been developed, including plug-assisted retrograde transvenous obliteration (PARTO), where a vascular plug is deployed within a portosystemic shunt. To our knowledge, we present the first North American case of PARTO in the setting of a large splenorenal shunt for the management of portosystemic encephalopathy.

No abstract

In swine, MR imaging can reveal changes in renal function after x-ray-guided PTA for unilateral RAS.