Aetiology and management of persistent withdrawal occlusion in venous ports in oncology patients

INTRODUCTION

Persistent withdrawal occlusion (PWO) is a specific catheter malfunction characterized by the inability to withdraw blood through the device. The most common cause of PWO in ports is the presence of a fibroblastic sleeve (FS). If malfunction occurs, medication can be applied incorrectly with the increased risk of complications.

METHODS

One hundred seventy-seven cases of PWO in venous ports were managed. We focused on evaluating the cause of PWO, the frequency of occurrence of FS, and the options to address the malfunction. The patients underwent fluoroscopy with a contrast agent administration. Mechanical disruption (MD) with a syringe of saline using the flush method was used; in case of its failure, subsequent administration of a lock solution with taurolidine and urokinase, or low-dose thrombolysis with alteplase was indicated. Demographic data were compared with a control group.

RESULTS

A significantly higher proportion of female patients was found in the cohort of patients with PWO (80.3% vs 66.3%, p = 0.004), dominantly patients with ovarian cancer (12.8% vs 4.8%, p = 0.022). No effect of the cannulated vein or the type of treatment on the incidence of PWO was demonstrated. The presence of FS was verified in 70% of cases. MD with a syringe was successful in 53.5% of cases. A significantly shorter time to referral (3 weeks) was demonstrated with successful management. The overall success rate of achieving desobliteration by MD alone or in combination with a thrombolytic (urokinase or alteplase) administration was 97.4%.

CONCLUSION

We created a method for resolving PWO using MD +/- application of thrombolytics with 97.4% success rate. Current evidence showed that FS is not likely to be affected by thrombolytic drugs; however, we have ascertained an effect of these drugs, proposing a hypothesis of microthrombotic events at the tip of the catheter if fibroblastic sleeve is present.

Assessing and Restoring Patency in Midline Catheters

Maintaining and restoring patency in midline catheters has been a significant issue in the hospitalized patient requiring a multitude of infusates and frequent blood specimen collection. Currently, clinicians may not use this device as often as clinically indicated because they lack an approved intervention to treat thrombotic occlusions. The purpose of this research was to show evidence that alteplase, a US Food and Drug Administration-approved thrombolytic for central vascular access devices, is a safe and effective thrombolytic for midline catheters. A prospective open label study of 497 midline catheters was conducted from July 2018 to December 2018. Of those studied, 112 devices were treated with 1 mg of alteplase, and 109 had patency restored with 1 dose. None of the 112 patients had a major adverse event, and only 1 minor event was recorded and was resolved without removal of the midline catheter. Treating occluded central vascular access devices with 2 mg of alteplase has been safe and effective since 2001. With this research, safety and efficacy appears to be established for 1 mg of alteplase, repeat times 1 mg if necessary, in midline catheters. With the option to treat patients with occluded midline catheters rather than replace, clinicians can reduce cost, increase patient satisfaction, and preserve vein health.

Shanghai expert consensus on totally implantable access ports 2019

Totally implantable access ports (TIAPs) are used for patients with poor peripheral vascular support requiring central venous access. In recent years, TIAPs have been gradually accepted and promoted by patients, doctors, and nurses owing to their advantages of convenient carrying, a long maintenance period, low complications, and a high quality of life for patients. Currently, medical personnel that handle TIAP implantation and management in China are from different areas of healthcare, including surgery, internal medicine, radiology, nurse anesthesia, vascular access, etc., and many only handle TIAP as a part of their duties. Therefore, the operating procedures and steps for the diagnosis and treatment of complications of TIAP vary from person to person, resulting in different incidence and treatment methods for complications in the implantation and use of TIAP in different medical units. Based on this, we have updated the Shanghai expert consensus on TIAPs from 2015 and explored the diagnosis and treatment procedures of related complications while continuing to emphasize standardized implantation and maintenance.

Interventions to obstructive long-term central venous catheter in cancer patients: a meta-analysis

PURPOSE

The aim of this systematic review was to identify the interventions used to treat obstructive events, whether thrombotic or non-thrombotic, in long-term central venous catheters (LT-CVC) in cancer patients.

METHODS

This review included clinical trials and observational studies reporting the drugs used to treat obstructive catheter events in cancer patients. The authors developed specific search strategies for CINAHL, Cochrane CENTRAL, LILACS, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Open Grey, and ProQuest. The authors evaluated methodological quality of included studies using criteria from Cochrane's Collaboration Tool and the Methodological Index for non-randomized studies (MINORS). The quality of evidence was analyzed by using GRADE's software.

RESULTS

More than 9000 articles were found across the databases. After duplicates removed, the studies were selected in 2 phases. After that, only 15 studies were included. The drugs used to restoration of catheter function were urokinase (53.3%), alteplase (20%), tenecteplase (13.3%), reteplase (6.7%), recombinant urokinase (6.7%), and staphylokinase (6.7%). The results of meta-analysis of 14 studies showed an overall restoration rate of ~ 84%. The drug type meta-analysis demonstrates a success rate of ~ 84%, ~ 92%, and ~ 84% for urokinase, alteplase, and tenecteplase groups, respectively. The main methodological problem in included articles concerns the sample. The quality of evidence ranged from very low to high.

CONCLUSION

The most common interventions used to treat thrombotic catheter occlusion in cancer patients were urokinase and alteplase. No evidence was found about the treatment for non-thrombotic occlusion, thus elucidating an important gap to be investigated.

Fibrin sheaths in central venous port catheters: treatment with low-dose, single injection of urokinase on an outpatient basis

Purpose

Evaluation of the efficacy of single-shot, low-dose urokinase administration for the treatment of port catheter-associated fibrin sheaths.

Methods

Forty-six patients were retrospectively evaluated for 54 episodes of port catheter dysfunction. The presence of a fibrin sheath was detected by angiographic contrast examinations. On an outpatient basis, patients subsequently received thrombolysis consisting of a single injection of urokinase (15.000 IU in 1.5 mL normal saline) through the port system. A second attempt was made in cases of treatment failure. Patients were followed up for technical success, complications and long-term outcome.

Results

Port dysfunction occurred at a median of 117 days after implantation (range: 7–825 days). The technical success after first port dysfunction by thrombolysis was 87% (40/46); thereof, initial thrombolysis was effective in 78% (36/46). Nine patients (20%) received a second dose of urokinase after previous treatment failure. Follow-up was available for 26 of 40 patients after successful thrombolysis. In 8 of these, rethrombosis occurred after a median of 98 days (range: 21–354 days), whereby rethrombolysis was effective in 5 of 7 (63%) patients. The overall success of all thrombolyses performed was 70% (45/64). No procedure-related technical or clinical complications occurred. After first favorable thrombolysis, a Kaplan–Meier analysis yielded a 30-, 90- and 180-day probability of patency of 96%, 87% and 81%.

Conclusion

Thrombolytic therapy on an outpatient basis appears to be a safe and efficient. Three-month patency rates are comparable to more invasive treatment options, including catheter exchange over a guide wire and percutaneous fibrin sheath stripping.

High-dose corticosteroid associated with catheter-related thrombosis after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

BACKGROUND

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) recipients are at an increased risk of thrombotic complications, most of which are catheter-related and present a substantial challenge. The incidence of CRT varies considerably depending on clinical factors. However, the underlying pathogenesis and risk factors remain unclear.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective nested case-control study in patients following allo-HSCT. Thrombotic episodes were diagnosed based on the clinical suspicion of the physician (pain, swelling, etc.) with subsequent CVC or PICC thrombosis confirmed via duplex ultrasound. Cases with CRT and controls were matched for time of HSCT, age at HSCT, donor source and type of insertion (CVCs or PICC).

RESULTS

During the 8-year period, catheters were placed in 2896 patients, with a total of 40 patients (1.38%) developed CRT, among which 11 were associated with CVCs and 29 were associated with PICCs. The median duration from catheter insertion to thrombosis was 97days. Despite reports of an association between thrombosis and infection, central line-associated bloodstream infection was comparable between groups. No significant differences were noted in terms of primary disease, donor type, conditioning regimen or catheter type between the cases and controls. A multivariate regression analysis identified high-dose corticosteroids as independent risk factors for the development of CRT. CRT seems to negatively affect prognosis in allo-HSCT patients.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, we demonstrate that the use of high-dose corticosteroids is correlated with the onset of CRT. However, the efficacy and safety of thromboprophylaxis in this population require further investigation.