How safe is femoral access? Insights from an audit of contemporary practice

Complications of arterial access are an important cause of morbidity following percutaneous coronary intervention. Recently published data suggest a rate of around 3.5% of major vascular complications. We present an audit of vascular access site complications in a single centre over a 12-month period. Overall complication rates were low (1.2%) in a centre whose default strategy following femoral artery access is arterial closure using the Perclose™ device. Specific problems using the Starclose™ device in patients treated with abciximab are described. Infected femoral artery haematoma resulted in the most severe complications.