Evaluation of peripherally inserted central catheters in high risk newborns / 中国当代儿科杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the feasibility and safety of the peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) as a venous access for newborns who need a long-term venous transfusion.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Sixty-five newborns receiving PICC and 80 newborns receiving peripheral intravenous catheters (PIV) from April 2006 to February 2008 were included in this study. A retrospective cohort study was used to compare the indwelling time of catheters, catheter-related mechanical complications, the incidence of sepsis, and the mortality between the two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The indwelling time of catheters in the PICC and the PIV groups was 18.75+/-7.62 days (range7-62 days) and 1.49+/-0.57 days (range 30 minutes to 4 days) respectively. The indwelling time of catheters in the PICC group was significantly longer than that in the PIV group (<0.01). The incidence of catheter-related mechanical complications in the PICC group was significantly lower than that in the PIV group (27.7% vs 63.8%; <0.01). There were no significant differences in the incidence of sepsis and the mortality between the two groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The application of PICC can cause a decrease in the number of venous puncture. PICC is a safe and effective venous access in newborns.</p>