In-Vivo Damage Development in Vena Cava Filter: Study of a Retrieved Device

This article was prepared from a project assigned in a graduate class, BME 7371, Failure Assessment of Medical Devices, taught at Wright State University by the senior author. The device was donated for the study which was successfully retrieved after 93 days in-vivo. Even-though the mechanical integrity of the device held in-tact, the microscopic observations revealed that the damage via corrosion and scratching took place on the surface of the device. The image reconstructed in 3D using image-J software to determine device roughness and depth-of-pits. Results presented in this paper show that damage starts developing in these devices after the implantation that resulted in premature failure in many cases as reported in the media and literature.