Effect of catheter tunnelling and a nutrition nurse on catheter sepsis during parenteral nutrition. A controlled trial

Abstract

In a three-year controlled trial of subcutaneous catheter tunnelling as a method of reducing total parenteral nutrition (TPN) catheter sepsis 99 silicone catheters (52 tunnelled, 47 untunnelled) were inserted into the subclavian (94%) or jugular (6%) veins under aseptic conditions. The influence of a nutrition nurse, who joined the nutrition team after 18 months, on catheter sepsis rate was also documented. Catheter sepsis was confirmed in 13 of 47 (28%) untunnelled catheters and only 6 of 52 (11.5%) tunnelled catheters (p less than 0.05). A nutrition nurse reduced sepsis rate from 33% (tunnelled 6, untunnelled 11) to 4% (0 tunnelled; 2 untunnelled) (p less than 0.001). There was no significant difference between tunnelled and untunnelled catheters in sepsis rates after the arrival of the nutrition nurse. Although 85% patients had concurrent internal sepsis, the pathogens implicated in catheter sepsis came from superficial sites in 16 of 19 cases (p less than 0.01). Rigorous aseptic nursing care is thus the most significant factor in the reduction of TPN catheter sepsis, but tunnelling can reduce sepsis rate when nursing care is suboptimum.