Percutaneous extraction of a short, 0.038-inch guide wire retained in the right common iliac artery.

Percutaneous extraction of intravascular foreign bodies with the help of specifically designed devices is the standard method of treatment and should be attempted in appropriate cases before any surgical approach. The majority of retrieved materials are catheter fragments localized in the superior vena cava, right side of the heart, or pulmonary artery. During diagnostic coronary angiography of a 65-year-old man, a short, 0.038-inch guide wire was identified in the right common iliac artery. It was erroneously left there during arterial monitoring performed at another center. The guide wire was successfully removed percutaneously using a combination of "wire-balloon" technique without any available specifically designed device.