Critical Hand Ischemia After Radial Access for Coronary Angiography – Case Report

BACKGROUND: Radial artery is now the most frequent access for coronary angiography and intervention. Despite the common opinion that it is safer than femoral access, it has the potential for serious complications. One of them is upper limb ischemia caused by radial artery thrombosis. CASE REPORT: We are presenting a case of critical hand ischemia after coronary angiography performed through radial access despite existing risk factors, which may be considered as relative contraindications. CONCLUSIONS: In the presented case, decision was made to use radial access despite several risk factors of upper limb ischemia – diabetes, end-stage renal failure, hyperparathyroidism, or even symptoms of left upper limb ischemia. Furthermore, for diagnostic coronary angiography 5F instead of 4F introducer was used.