Restick following initial angioseal use

The Angioseal hemostatic device is currently in widespread use for arterial closure after both diagnostic and interventional procedures. Resticking of the artery in which an Angioseal device has been placed has been discouraged for up to 90 days after the initial device placement because of theoretical concerns of disruption or dislodgment of the hemostatic plug. However, no data are available to address this concern. We evaluated the incidence of vascular complications following restick of the artery in which an Angioseal device had been deployed less than or equal to90 days previously in 181 patients. Restick occurred 1-7 days after device placement in 80 patients, 8-30 days in 34 patients, and 31-90 days in 66 patients. There were no major bleeding, vascular repair, vessel occlusion, or embolizations. Three large hematomas (1.7%) were noted. These data suggest that restick can be performed safely after initial Angioseal deployment.