StatLock Reduces Deadly Infections, Journal Reports.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

SAN DIEGO--(BW HealthWire)--Feb. 5, 2002

The StatLock catheter securement device is superior to suture in reducing potentially deadly infections, according to a paper published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Vascular & Interventional Radiology.

The study compared StatLock to suture for securement of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs). These catheters are commonly used for longer-term IV therapy to benefit hospitalized and home-care patients.

StatLock usage resulted in significantly fewer bloodstream infections, the authors reported.

An estimated 16,000 patients in the U.S. develop such infections each year. These infections kill 12 percent to 25 percent of patients who get them, causing approximately 1,900 deaths to 4,000 deaths each year.

"Catheter-related bloodstream infections are a substantial problem, with significant attributed mortality and very high costs," said Gregory Schears, M.D., one of the study authors. It can cost up to $29,000 to treat each infection.

The study also showed StatLock reduced total complications and unplanned catheter removals by approximately one-third, when compared to suture.

Another major finding was that StatLock eliminated securement-related needlesticks to healthcare workers, by eliminating the need to use a suture needle for securement.

"Needlesticks pose a huge risk for healthcare providers. Using securement devices in place of tape and suture will help clinicians and healthcare facilities comply with new federal safety mandates," Dr. Schears said.

Accidental needlesticks are grossly underreported, making them "a much bigger problem than most people realize," Dr. Schears said.

Dr. Schears oversaw the study while at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. He now practices at the Mayo Clinic.

The study encompassed 170 patients, 85 with catheters secured by suture and 85 with catheters secured by StatLock.

"The entire topic of catheter securement and its effect on catheter-related complications has been largely ignored," said Dr. Schears. "Better securement can result in lower costs, better needlestick safety, and significantly fewer of these very dangerous bloodstream infections."

The StatLock line of catheter securement devices was invented by an emergency physician in a deliberate effort to limit the complications he was seeing from inadequate tape and suture securement. In addition to securing PICCs, various StatLock designs also secure central venous catheters, peripheral IV's, drainage catheters and other access devices.

Peripherally inserted central catheters are extended-dwell catheters valued for their safer and more effective delivery of medications and fluids. PICC usage is growing at an estimated 10 percent per year, and PICCs are increasingly being inserted by interventional radiologists, rather than by nurses.

Dr. Schears's previous work on the effectiveness of StatLock catheter securement devices in pediatric and adult patients has been included in the Compendium of Successful Practices, a publication of the National Patient Safety Foundation and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

Other authors of the JVIR paper were Alvin Yamamoto, M.D., Jeffrey A. Solomon, M.D.; Michael Soulen, M.D.; James Tang, M.D.; and Kim Parkinson, R.N., Richard Lin, M.D.

Original research for the peer-reviewed study published in the Journal of Vascular & Interventional Radiology was supported by an educational grant from Venetec International, makers of StatLock catheter securement devices. For more information, call [phone] or access www.StatLock.com.