The Effect of Simultaneous Sand-Ice Bag Application on Hemorrhage and Hematoma after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction: Angioplasty is widely used as a selective treatment for acute coronary syndromes.
The complications of this procedure often lead to an increase in the length of the patients’ stay
and hospital costs. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effect of using sand and ice bags
on hematoma and hemorrhage after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
Methods: In this randomized clinical trial, study was completed with participation of 60
patients with femoral angioplasty candidate, referring to Imam Reza hospital in Mashhad, were
randomly divided into control and intervention groups. In the control group, a sand bag was
placed on the location for up to 4 hours. In the intervention group, the ice bag and the sand bag
were used simultaneously for 15 minutes, and then for 45 minutes, with the pressure of the sand
bag only. This cycle was repeated four times. Hemorrhage (volume and weight) and hematoma
(area and lump) were checked four times. The data were analyzed using SPSS software version
22.
Results: The rate of hemorrhage after intervention was significantly reduced in the intervention
group compared to the control group. Although the incidence of hematoma in the intervention
group decreased from control to 20% to 6.7%, but the statistical test was not significant.
Conclusion: According to the results of the present study, the simultaneous sand-ice bag
application can reduce post-PCI’ hemorrhage (and hematoma rate, though insignificantly)
through compression and vasoconstriction.