Broken guidewire – A tale of three cases

Guidewire fracture is a rare complication of percutaneous coronary intervention. Retained guide wire fragments in the coronary tree can cause thrombosis, embolic phenomena, dissection, perforation, and vessel occlusion. The management of this complication is still debated and it involves conservative management of leaving wire alone, percutaneous retrieval of fractured fragment, use of second stent to crush the wire, or open heart surgery. Here, I am reporting three cases of broken guidewire and they have been managed in three different ways.