Abstract:
Objective: The objective of this scoping review is to examine the extent of vascular access research undertaken in the critically ill COVID-19 population.
Introduction: Two fundamental supportive invasive interventions in the critical care environment are mechanical ventilation and intravenous therapy. Ventilation research has dominated the literature since the pandemic began, with little research on vascular access devices, despite these interventions existing almost codependently. The systematic proning of this cohort of patients increases the risk of dressing infiltration and infection. Vascular access devices, and the coagulopathic manifestations of COVID-19, place these patients at a heightened risk of complications. Vascular access device insertion, care, and maintenance in the critically ill COVID-19 population must be understood to investigate whether this population is at an increased risk of vascular access device complications and vessel health compromise.
Inclusion criteria: All study designs will be eligible for inclusion in the review. The intensive care unit will be the main focus of this scoping review. Results will be limited to adults with disease progression severe enough to require admission to critical care.
Methods: A search of Embase, MEDLINE (Ovid), Web of Science, and PubMed will be conducted. Clinical trial data will also be sought. As recommended by JBI, a 3-step search process will be followed. Data will be extracted using a data extraction instrument based on a template from JBI. The review will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) and results will be presented in a PRISMA flow diagram. Publication dates will be filtered from 2019 to the present; only English-language results will be included.
Reference:Morrissey E, Hernon O, Egan R, Carr PJ. Vascular access in critically ill patients with COVID-19: A scoping review protocol. JBI Evid Synth. 2023 Feb 3. doi: 10.11124/JBIES-22-00275. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36727245.