[Progress Report on Cases of Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Management in Our Hospital, Including...

In our hospital, the number of cases in which peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) are used has increased; these patients include elderly people who cannot take medications orally, patients with low levels of awareness, and patients with dysphagia. We report the situation at this time mainly with regard to the number of days on which PICCs were used.

Fifteen elderly patients (male, n=7; female, n=8; average age, 89.3±5.3 years) underwent PICC insertion at our hospital from August 2016 to October 2018. Among these patients, 6 had cerebrovascular disorders, 5 had aspiration pneumonia, 2 had Parkinson's syndrome, 1 had consciousness disorder resulting from asphyxia caused by foreign body aspiration, and 1 had interstitial pneumonia. Seven patients received home management. In each patient, we measured the length of time that the PICC was in place.

The average duration for which a PICC was in place was 92.9±25.4 days (in cases of home care management, 159.5±48.3 days). The longest duration was 342 days, in a patient with aspiration pneumonia. The endpoints were death and discharge from hospital. Complications/accidents occurred as a result of catheter infection in 2 cases (both patients recovered after catheter removal) and as a result of self-extraction in 1 case.

These results suggest that PICC is useful and does not cause serious adverse effects, even in elderly patients who require central parenteral nutrition management.