Does antibiotic lock therapy prevent catheter-associated bacteremia in hemodialysis?

Central venous catheter-related blood stream infection is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with renal disease treated with hemodialysis. Antibiotic lock solutions can be effective in preventing this complication in patients with hemodialysis. Searching in Epistemonikos database, which is maintained by screening more than twenty databases, we identified eight systematic reviews including seventeen randomized trials. We combined the evidence using meta-analysis and generated a summary of findings table following the GRADE approach. We concluded that antibiotic lock solutions probably decrease catheter-related blood stream infection in hemodialysis patients.