Retained carotid artery intravascular foreign body

A 72-year-old male with a history of tobacco use, hypertension, atrial fibrillation, and stroke presented with dizziness and was discovered to have a retained intravascular wire in the left internal carotid artery from a prior endovascular procedure done over 1 year prior to presentation. Given this timing and concern for an embedded wire tip, open carotid artery exploration was performed with removal of the wire and patch angioplasty without complications. Intravascular foreign bodies are rare but have a significant risk of complications, and generally, percutaneous retrieval is advised. This case was performed open, given the risk for injury to the vessel.