A few simple steps for handling central-line catheters in pediatric intensive care units saved more than a hundred children’s lives and millions of dollars, according to a study published online today in Pediatrics.

Children in intensive care units often have a central line—a tube inserted into a major blood vessel in the neck, chest or groin to serve as portal for medication or fluids—for weeks or months. Inserted incorrectly or mishandled after insertion, the line can become a gateway for bacteria into the patient's bloodstream. Because doctors and nurses handle the catheter multiple times each day, proper handling is critical.

Basic precautions, such as daily assessment of the continued need for a central line and prompt removal when no longer necessary; regularly changing the dressing; changing the tubes and caps attached to it; cleaning the line before and after each use; and hand washing before handling the line can prevent infections, the study found. Hospitals that followed such measures cut the number of infections by 56 percent over three years.

Each year, 250,000 central-line infections occur in U.S. hospitals, and about 30,000 people die from them, research suggests. Each infection carries a price tag of up to $45,000.

Read more about bloodstream infections as well our advice on how to stay safe in the hospital. And see our hospital Ratings, which includes information on how well hospitals prevent bloodstream infections.

Source
Reducing PICU Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections: 3-Year Results [Pediatrics]