Peripheral phlebitis: a point-prevalence study

Area of Science:

• Medical-Surgical Nursing
• Patient Safety
• Vascular Access Devices

Background:

• Peripheral phlebitis is a common complication of intravenous therapy.
• Identifying risk factors is crucial for preventing adverse patient outcomes.
• Current practices may not adequately address phlebitis prevention in adult medical-surgical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify key factors contributing to peripheral phlebitis in adult medical-surgical patients.
• To provide data for evaluating the need for practice changes in intravenous therapy.
• To assess the point prevalence of peripheral phlebitis within the study population.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from 188 intravenous sites.
• Statistical examination of patient demographics, medication administration, and nutritional status.
• Comparison of observed phlebitis rates against established benchmarks.

Main Results:

• Female patients were found to be at higher risk.
• Increased medication dosage and longer intravenous catheter dwell times correlated with higher phlebitis rates.
• Suboptimal nutrition was identified as a significant risk factor for developing peripheral phlebitis.

Conclusions:

• The study identified specific patient and treatment-related factors that increase peripheral phlebitis risk.
• The observed point prevalence exceeded the recommended 5% threshold.
• A review of facility-specific patient care and documentation practices for intravenous therapy was initiated based on these findings.