Percutaneous Central Catheters and Peripheral Intravenous Catheters Have Similar Infection Rates in Very Low Birth Weight Infants

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Abstract
OBJECTIVE: We performed this study to determine if percutaneous central lines (PCLs) were associated with infection more often than peripherally placed intravenous catheters (PIVs). STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a retrospective, cohort study of 53 infants with PCLs inserted from March 1993 to February 1995 for evidence of catheter-related bloodstream infection and 97 cohorts with PIVs who were matched to the infants with PCLs by admission date and birth weight. We considered an infant to have catheter-related bloodstream infection if bacteremia occurred while the PCL or PIV was in place with no other identifiable infection focus. Statistical analyses were performed by using either Student’s t test or the Mann-Whitney U test where appropriate. RESULTS: There were eight infections per 1000 catheter days of PCL use and nine infections per 1000 catheter days of PIV use. CONCLUSION: PCLs do not become infected more often than PIVs.