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Central venous line sepsis in the intensive care unit A study comparing antibiotic coated catheters with plain catheters
Author(s) -
THORNTON J.,
TODD N. J.,
WEBSTER N. R.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
anaesthesia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.839
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1365-2044
pISSN - 0003-2409
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2044.1996.tb14994.x
Subject(s) - medicine , vancomycin , sepsis , intensive care unit , central venous catheter , catheter , antibiotics , surgery , intensive care , incidence (geometry) , population , anesthesia , staphylococcus aureus , intensive care medicine , physics , environmental health , optics , biology , bacteria , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics
Summary A randomised controlled clinical trial was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of antibiotic bonded lines in the reduction of central venous catheter infection. One hundred and seventy‐six plain and bonded catheters were inserted into one hundred and ten patients in an intensive care unit, many of whom were admitted with evidence of sepsis. The catheters used in the study group, which had been pre‐treated by the manufacturers with the cationic surfactant tridodecylmethylammonium chloride, were bonded with vancomycin 1 g made up in 10 ml of water immediately prior to insertion. The catheters used in the control group were neither pre‐treated nor bonded with vancomycin. Eighty percent of control group catheters were infected compared with 62% of study catheters (p = 0.01). The most common organism isolated was coagulase negative staphylococcus. We conclude that antibiotic bonding can reduce central venous catheter infection even in a patient population with a high incidence of sepsis.