What are the potential complications of IACB?
Potential complications include arterial injury and hemorrhage; aortic dissection; arterial thromboembolism with associated limb, visceral, or cerebral ischemia; malpositioning within the aorta proximal to the left subclavian artery or far distal to the aortic arch; venous malpositioning; balloon rupture with potential air embolism if helium gas is used for balloon inflation; thrombocytopenia; soft tissue infection or hematoma formation at the percutaneous site of insertion; or bacteremia/septicemia. If the balloon is situated upstream from the left subclavian artery origin, potential occlusion of the arterial branch vessels of the aortic arch (i.e., innominate, left common carotid, and left subclavian arteries) is possible. When the balloon is located too far downstream from the aortic arch, counterpulsation is less effective, and potential occlusion of the visceral branch vessels is also possible.
