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Coiling is performed in a hospital that specialises in neurological (brain and spine) conditions.The procedure is similar to an angiogram and involves a catheter being fed up to the brain via the femoral artery (see Figure 3 in printed bound verion or pdf) but is much more complex and is carried out under a general anaesthetic in the radiology department.

This means you must not eat or drink anything six to eight hours before the procedure, the staff on the ward will tell you when to stop. Before you leave the ward a nurse will shave a small area of your groin, this is the entry site through which the coils are passed. If you are well enough you can shave yourself if you prefer. Coiling is a complex and delicate procedure and it will take at least four hours but often it may take longer.

On arrival at the radiology department an anaesthetist will give you a general anaesthetic and you will be asleep throughout the procedure. The room will have several large pieces of high technology scanning equipment which are needed to perform the coiling.The radiologist will make a small incision in your groin through which he or she will insert a very small tube (catheter) into your femoral artery. This is then threaded through the other blood vessels in your body until it reaches your neck and then into the brain.

With the use of a guide wire, the coils are slowly inserted into the aneurysm one by one.The largest coil is inserted first and then smaller coils are inserted until the aneurysm is filled.The average aneurysm will need 4-5 coils. Each coil has a small electrical current passed through it to detach it from the guide wire.This small current also assists the blood to clot and helps to seal the aneurysm.The site where the radiologist has removed the catheter may be slightly painful and bruising sometimes occurs. Occasionally this may be sealed or stitched.