The aim of the study was to determine the safety and efficacy of a novel femoral artery closure device (StarClose, Abbott Vascular Devices, Redwood City, CA) following percutaneous coronary intervention employing aspirin, heparin, and glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibition. A prospective nonrandomized single-center pilot study of the StarClose device included a subset of patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention utilizing GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors. Those that fulfilled the inclusion criteria (age < 80, no periprocedural haematoma, puncture above the superficial femoral and profunda femoralis artery bifurcation, no significant femoral artery disease) underwent closure of the femoral artery puncture site with a StarClose device immediately on completion of the procedure. Time to hemostasis (TTH), bleeding, mobilization, and short-term clinical follow-up data were collected, and an ultrasound scan of the femoral artery was performed 2 weeks later. Twenty-five patients were recruited, of whom 23 underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Their mean age was 58 +/- 12 years, 84% were male, and 63% had unstable angina. All were on aspirin 100-150 mg daily and all PCI patients received i.v. heparin 4-10,000 units at commencement of the procedure and clopidogrel 600 mg on completion. Two patients were on a tirofiban infusion and 23 received a double bolus of eptifibatide, each 0.18 mg/kg, separated by 10 min. The procedural success was 100% and device success 23/25 (92%), with 1 failure due to technical error. The median device delivery time was 36 sec (range, 11-178) and median TTH 37 sec (range, 10-509 sec). There were no major adverse events. In 10 patients, a moderate amount of tract ooze required a short period of adjunctive manual compression. Follow-up ultrasound femoral artery scans revealed no compromise of the vessel lumen. Femoral artery closure with the device following coronary angiography and intervention using glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor inhibitors is safe and effective. A randomized trial of a larger number of patients is warranted.