How to handle femoral artery closure devices and the potential complications that may occur with their use.

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States today.1 Treatment options include medical management, coronary interventions, and cardiac revascularization. An estimated 1.3 million inpatient cardiac catheterizations are performed annually; half of those patients have percutaneous cardiac interventions and about 400 000 undergo coronary artery bypass graft operations.1 Since the late 1990s, the death rate due to coronary heart disease has decreased by more than 30%.1 Because percutaneous cardiac interventions quickly reestablish blood flow to the heart, patients have a shorter length of stay and less cost.

Cardiac catheterization is the traditional method for examining coronary anatomy, determining coronary artery disease, and providing percutaneous intervention. Access to the heart is through a catheter via the femoral or radial artery. The femoral artery is preferred because of...

You do not currently have access to this content.