Maintenance of the patency of indwelling central venous catheters: is heparin necessary?

Abstract

The use of indwelling central venous catheters for the ambulatory management of children with cancer has been well described. There remains uncertainty as to the best method for maintaining the patency of these catheters. The standard approach at our institution is to flush the catheter twice daily with a solution containing heparin. This is both costly and inconvenient for most families. We describe a randomized cross-over study designed to compare the standard approach to a less intense program using an isotonic saline flush once a week. Evaluation continued for approximately 1,515 days in each study arm. The catheters were monitored for blockage, clot formation, and infection. One catheter blocked in a patient receiving the experimental method of care. Two episodes of thrombus formation were demonstrated at the end of the study (one in each of the study arms). The incidence of infection, while in keeping with our overall experience, was higher in the experimental arm. This led to a subsequent study, reported separately in this symposium. The results indicate that there is no significant difference, in the incidence of blocked catheters or other complications, between the two forms of care.