Peripherally inserted central venous lines versus central lines in surgical newborns - A comparison.

Objective. To compare the insertion characteristics, utilization profile, life span and the complication rates of Central lines (CL) and Peripherally inserted central lines (PICL). Methods. A prospective study of all CL or PICL insertions during January 2007 to September 2007 in the Neonatal Surgical Intensive Care Unit of a tertiary care center was done. The number of attempts, procedure time, duration of catheter stay, number of dressing done, complication during insertion and maintenance and cause of removal were noted and the differences analyzed statistically using Pearson chi square / t test. P value . 0.05 was considered significant. Results. Ninety two neonates were included in the present study of whom 60 were PICL insertions and 32 CL insertions. The two groups were comparable in terms of age, weight and the use of total perental nutrition (TPN) through the catheters. On comparing the PICL and CL groups, the number of attempts for successful insertion (p=0.003), the time taken (p=0.005), the number of dressing changes required during the indwelling period (p=0.005) and the overall complication rates (p=0.002) were significantly less in the PICL group. The PICL could be maintained for longer periods of time (p= 0.005) and only in 11.5% of the patients it had to be removed before completion of therapy as compared to 37.5% early removals for CL (p=0.02) Conclusion. PICL is a safe, effective and reliable method of providing prolonged IV access in newborns. It also has the least incidence of complications during insertion and maintenance over prolonged period of time when compared to CL and should be recommended for routine use in neonatal surgical patients.

Peritoneal penetrating pencil injury.

An 8 year old school going boy sustained an accidental peritoneal penetrating injury while playing with a pencil in his trouser pocket. Surgical exploration revealed intact intraperitoneal and retroperitoneal viscera and the pencil could be successfully removed. In addition to the acute injuries there are numerous late sequlae of pencil injuries that cause concern.