Apparatus for sealing a puncture communicating with a blood vessel includes a bioabsorbable sealing member secured to one end of a filament or other retaining member. The sealing member is delivered through the puncture into the vessel, and retracted against the wall of the vessel to provide temporary hemostasis. The sealing member is rapidly absorbed after exposure within the vessel, e.g., to an aqueous or heated physiological environment (e.g., exposure to blood or body temperature), immediately or shortly after completing a medical procedure via the puncture, e.g., within the time period that the patient is ambulatory.
