Cardiac interventions have become a commonly accepted treatment option for patients with coronary heart disease. Managing the arterial puncture site and femoral sheath removal is an important aspect of cardiac nursing practice for patients who have had cardiac diagnostic and interventional procedures. The purpose of this study was to compare the use of manual compression with a mechanical compression device in achieving haemostasis after femoral sheath removal in coronary angiography patients and to determine the ability of these two techniques to reduce groin complications. A randomised controlled trial comparing two compression protocols (manual and QuicKlamp ) was undertaken on a sample of 100 patients scheduled to have coronary angiography. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse and describe the data. Inter-group comparisons were analysed using either Chi-squared analysis for nominal data, or the Mann-Whitney U-test for continuous variables. The results indicated that the QuicKlamp device took longer to effect haemostasis after femoral sheath removal (P=0.000) and subjects took longer to mobilise than after manual compression (P=0.001). More haematomas occurred following manual compression after pressure dressing removal (P=0.027). At 5-day follow-up, more bruising was identified in those subjects in the QuicKlamp compression group (P=0.046), as was swelling in female subjects (P=0.044). More episodes of chest pain at 5-day follow-up were identified in the manual compression group (P=0.014). The findings demonstrate that QuicKlamp mechanical compression is a safe alternative to manual compression for attaining haemostasis after femoral sheath removal.