Do venepuncture procedures induce cortisol responses?
โVenepuncture procedures are frequently employed to continuously monitor humoral stress markers. As such procedures are conceived as “potent psychological and physiological stressors”, there is a need to determine whether venepuncture procedures themselves elicit cortisol responses and if so, how to deal with them appropriatelyโ Weckesser et al (2014).
Reported pain in patients who look away during venepuncture
“Almost three quarters of patients spontaneously look away during venepuncture, but their pain ratings are almost twice that of the quarter of patients who look”ย Vijayan et al (2014).
Net benefits of central-line associated bloodstream infection prevention efforts
โThe estimated net economic benefits ranged from $640 million to $1.8 billion, with the corresponding net benefits per case averted ranging from $15,780 to $24,391. The per dollar rate of return on the CDC’s investments ranged from $3.88 to $23.85โ Scottt et al (2014).
Risk factors and outcomes of patients with BSI due to Acinetobacter baumannii-calcoaceticus
“BSIs due to ABC are more common among critically ill and debilitated institutionalized patients, who are heavily exposed to health-care settings and invasive devices” Chopra et al (2014).
Femoral central venous catheter contamination and infection rates reviewed
“CRCOL and CRBSI rates in patients on CRRT are low and not influenced significantly by initial or serial femoral catheterizations with guidewire exchange or new venipuncture. CRCOL risk is higher in older and heavier patients, the latter especially so with femoral sites” Chua et al (2014).
Anemia and red blood cell transfusion in critically ill cardiac patients
“The threshold at which the risk of anemia outweighs the risk of transfusion is not known. More studies are needed to determine when RBC transfusion is indicated in hospitalized patients with cardiac disease”ย Du Pont-Thibodeau et al (2014).
Measurement of flow rate variability in neonatal IV therapy
โCaregivers should be aware of these findings, and optimise the delivery of IV substances by making use of check valves with low opening pressures and by minimising compliance and volume of the IV-administration set. Furthermore, changes in the relative height between pumps and catheter tip should be minimizedโ van der Eijk et al (2014).
Effect of in-line infusion filtering on in-line pressure monitoring
“Placement of an infusion filter does not have a significant effect on the in-line pressure monitoring and has no adverse effect on detecting pressure-related complications of IV administration” Jonkers et al (2014).
Flow rate accuracy of refilled elastomeric infusion pumps
“This study indicated that the delivery rate accuracy of elastomeric infusion pumps is preserved after repeated usage. These laboratory findings suggested that elastomeric pumps could be safely refilled in the successive days to provide postoperative analgesia”ย Mohseni and Ebneshahidi (2014).
Strategies for management of contrast media extravasation
“In this article, we review the incidence, risk factors, clinical manifestations, and options for preventing and treating contrast medium extravasation in soft tissues. Finally, we present the protocol we use to manage extravasation at our hospital”ย Pacheco Compaรฑa et al (2014).
Patient experience of central line care helps to standardise practice
“Although many participants expressed confidence in their knowledge of line care, some were uncertain about what to do if the dressing became loose or wet, or how to recognize an infection. Patients seemed to be astute observers of their own care and offered insights into practice variation”ย Weingart et al (2014).
Recommendations from CDC for the prevention of catheter-related infections
“The aim of this work is to show and emphasize the last updated recommendations collected in the 2011 Guidelines for the Prevention of Intravascular Catheter-Related Infections to nursing staff”ย Casanova Vivas (2014).
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) associated with needle procedures
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), previously known as reflex sympathetic dystrophy, is attracting more public attention in Japan which is likely a result of the recent upsurge in lawsuits filed against medical institutes. A recent court ruling over a case of injection-needlestick-injury induced CRPS has touched off serious debates among both medical practitioners and legal professionals”ย Hirata (2014).
Complications associated with parenteral nutrition in the neonate
“To improve neonatal care, future research on optimizing the content of PN and decreasing the incidence IFALD and CLASBIs is required”ย Calkins et al (2014).
Microbiocidal effects of taurolidine containing catheter lock solution
We have recently shown that a catheter lock solution containing taurolidine dramatically decreases catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) in patients on home parenteral nutrition (HPN) when compared to heparin”ย Olthof et al (2014).
Central line infection definition influences surveillance outcomes
“A simpler definition, central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), is recommended for surveillance purposes. Because exclusion of all other infection sources is difficult, CRBSI cases may be overestimated by using the CLABSI definition” Chen et al (2014).
Antimicrobial-impregnated CVC in pediatric patients
“There is an urgent need for large-scale RCTs focusing on different antimicrobial-impregnated catheters in these patients to further enhance current evidence” Lai and Yue (2021).
Reducing rejected laboratory samples – Full Text
“Using a quality improvement approach for the detailed analyses of specimen rejection rates and related issues helped to formulate efficient plans to target this issue” Gupta et al (2021).
Home hemodialysis for older people
“The development of an assisted HHD care delivery model and advancement of telehealth and technology in provision of HHD care may increase accessibility of HHD services for older patients” Wu et al (2021).
Predicting CRBSI in hemodialysis patients
“Prolonged catheter duration, low serum albumin, and high mean platelet volume independently predict the development of CRBSI in patients undergoing hemodialysis for acute kidney injury or chronic kidney disease” Demirci et al (2021).
Regulation of fluid and electrolyte balance
“Disorders in sodium balance with consequent effect on osmolality come about mainly due to disturbances in water homeostasis rather than an abnormality of sodium intake or excretion” Essa and Mcnab (2021).
ECG for PICC tip positioning
“The application of ECGs in PICC tip positioning can improve the accuracy of catheter tip positioning and reduce the incidence of related complications” Yu et al (2021).
Inadvertent arterial puncture during CVC placement – Full Text
” Utilization of real-time ultrasound guidance via the subclavian approach could have allowed for direct visualization of needle insertion to the anatomical structures, guidewire location, and directionality, all of which can lead to decreased complications and improved cannulation success compared with the landmark technique” Alon (2021).
PICC associated infection and inflammatory markers
“This study aimed to investigate the relationship between serum amyloid protein A (SAA), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), and PICC infection in patients with malignant tumor” Chen et al (2021).
Mortality of hemodialysis patients with COVID-19
“Hemodialysis patients using a CVC as the vascular access, aside from diabetic and elderly ones, should be closely monitored due to their high risk of death in the course of the COVID-19” Lugon et al (2021).
Virtual reality during venipuncture
“Longer procedure times associated with VR use during venipunctures (4-6 minutes on average) may be attributed to pauses to troubleshoot VR games not tailored for medical procedures” Canares et al (2021).
Breast cancer and PICC placement
“The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the risk for development of BCRL in ipsilateral arm IV placement compared to contralateral arm IV placement to prior breast cancer surgery” Naranjo et al (2021).
Ultrasound-guided subclavian vein cannulation – Full Text
“In this article, we discuss the indications, contraindications and complications associated with subclavian vein cannulation, and present an ultrasound-guided approach to infraclavicular subclavian cannulation” Davies et al (2021).
INICC report found 7785 CLABSI
“Pooled CLAB rate was 5.30/1,000 CL-days; VAE rate was 11.47/1,000 MV-days, and CAUTI rate was 3.16/1,000 UC-days” Rosenthal et al (2021).
Skill decline after CVC insertion simulation training
“While there was some evidence of skill retention after simulation, overall most studies demonstrated skill decline over time” Legoux et al (2021).
Intramuscular injection pain reduction
“As a result of the meta-analysis, it was found that ShotBlocker application in IM injection in adult patients reduced patients’ pain intensity” ลahan and Yildiz (2021).
Heating intravenous fluid tubing to treat hypothermia
“We conducted an experimental study to measure the ability of commercially available heating elements to warm intravenous (IV) fluids during infusion” Rodriguez et al (2021).