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The use of the water-flushing technique in the maintenance of totally implanted catheters and in the reduction of infections - the method of choice applied by the nursing staff of an oncology ambulatory
Author(s) -
Paloma dos Santos Garrido,
Beatriz da Costa Aguiar Alves,
Fabiana Sousa,
Simone Meneghetti Zatta,
Lilian de Abreu,
Érika Maria Monteiro Santos,
Maria de Fatima David,
Francisco Winter dos Santos Figueiredo,
Fernando Adami,
Fernando Luiz Affonso Fonseca
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
international archives of medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1755-7682
DOI - 10.3823/2076
Subject(s) - medicine , catheter , port (circuit theory) , ambulatory , flushing , distilled water , surgery , intensive care medicine , chemistry , electrical engineering , chromatography , engineering , endocrinology
Backgroud: Port-a-Cath catheters have been widely used in the clinical systemic therapy of cancer owing to the level of safety and effectiveness provided to patients during the treatment. The current study aimed to evaluate the decrease in risk of infection and the permeability condition of totally implanted catheters by using distilled water in the maintenance of Port-a-Caths. Methods and findings: Over the period between November 2008 and October 2014, a total of 109 patients with Port-a-Cath were attended to at the Ambulatory Chemotherapy Treatment Center from the Santa Marcelina Hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The focus was on patients who had the totally implanted catheters, encompassing not only the treatment itself but also the maintenance of the devices. From the total sample, only 5 patients (4.6%) had catheter infection. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA 11.0. Conclusion: The conclusion was that the use of distilled water in the maintenance of a Port-a-Cath has proven to be effective and safe regarding infection risks and the device permeability.

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