Vascular closure devices and the risk of vascular complications after percutaneous coronary intervention in patients receiving glycoprotein IIb-IIIa inhibitors

Vascular closure devices offer advantages over traditional means of obtaining hemostasis after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in terms of patient comfort and time to ambulation. We investigate whether such devices also reduce the risk of vascular complications in selected patient populations. We conducted a retrospective analysis of all patients who underwent PCI at our institution between January 1998 and December 1999. Of 3,151 consecutive patients, 3,027 were eligible to receive vascular closure devices. Of these, 1,485 received a closure device and 1,409 received glycoprotein IIb-IIIa antagonists. The overall vascular complication rate, as defined by the need for surgical repair or transfusion, or the development of arteriovenous fistula, pseudoaneurysm, or large hematoma, was 4.20%. By univariate analysis, the use of closure devices was associated with a lower vascular complication rate (3.03% vs 5.52%; p = 0.002) and a shorter length of hospital stay (2.77 vs 3.97 days, p