Intravascular kinking of catheter during central venous catheterization in a premature infant: A case report

ABSTRACT

Central venous catheterization is of vital importance in the management of critically ill neonates and also premature infants for total parenteral nutrition, hemodynamic monitoring, anesthetic care, transfusion or the administration of a few vasoactive drugs. Various complications of this procedure have been reported, such as arterial puncture, pneumothorax, cardiac tamponade, and catheter related kinking or knotting. Due to narrow safety margins, these complications are more dangerous in extremely premature infants compared to adults. We present a case of left subclavian venous catheterization complicated by U-shaped intravascular catheter kinking in premature infant which was successfully repositioned by insertion of a new guidewire through the previous catheter without secondary skin puncture.