CathRite at INS

May 7, 2008

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During our time at the 35th INS conference in Phoenix, Arizona we have viewed many products at the industrial exhibition. However, one product stood out from the rest. This product was innovative, easy to use and appears to have been designed with both patient and clinician needs in mind.

As we know, ensuring accurate PICC tip location is an essential element of safe PICC placement. Too short and the patient is at a greater risk of thrombus formation. Too long, issues such as arrhythmia’s may develop. Also, during placement, the PICC may not ‘travel’ along the route that you expect. This may result in PICC tip locations that are unsuitable, such as jugular or azygous vein tip location.

In the past, we have relied upon radiographic type imaging to determine tip location, either during or after PICC placement… excerpts from the Micronix website illustrate the benefits of this device… the frontal and lateral views in the demonstration appeared to be particularly useful!

“This real-time schematic representation of the placement procedure provides a continuous display of the passage and position of the tip of the catheter in relation to anatomical landmarks. The ‘live tracking’ display shows frontal and lateral views simultaneously, enabling medical practitioners to make real-time adjustments of catheter tip positions during placement, and eliminating the need for X-rays. The Technology improves patient care by enabling prompt delivery of vital medication. The Technology is simple, intuitive and inexpensive.”

“Every CVC placement performed using CathRite™ uses a disposable kit, consisting of a catheter, a guiding insert and other low value ancillary items. The RU (placed on the patient’s chest) receives the low-energy electromagnetic signal that is generated by the guiding insert. The MU processes the EMF signal and displays (in real-time) the movement of the catheter as placement occurs. The record of placement is printed out for inclusion into the patient’s case notes. When the placement is completed, the guiding insert is removed from the catheter and discarded”

We look forward to seeing this product in clinical use.