INFECTION IN CENTRAL LINES - ANTISEPTIC-IMPREGNATED VS STANDARD NON-IMPREGNATED CATHETERS

We report a survey of 196 consecutive central venous catheters (CVCs) placed in 151 patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) over a ten-mon th period Over this time the use of a new antiseptic-impregnated tripl e lumen CVC (Arrowgard Blue, Arrow International Inc., Pennsylvania, U .S.A.) was alternated on a bimonthly basis with the standard triple-lu men CVC (Arrow International Inc., Pennsylvania U.S.A.). The overall r ate of CVC tip infection was lower in the impregnated CVC group (15.6% vs 30.9%, P<0.05). The impregnated CVC group had a much lower cumulat ive infection rate when the dwell time in patients was five days or le ss (3.3% vs 26.9%, P<0.05). However; the difference between the cumula tive infection rate was not statistically significant (P>0.05) for dwe ll times of 6, 7 or 8 days respectively. There was no difference in th e CVC related bacteraemia rates between the two groups (3.9% vs 3.7%, P>0.05).