Real time wire localization by ultrasound during central line insertion improves accurate positioning in all upper...

To investigate whether point of care ultrasound can improve central venous catheter tip positioning.

A single center retrospective case control study. We compared the precision of central venous catheter tip positioning between two intensive care units while in only one of the units, we used point of care ultrasound for guidewire identification.

207 cases in which central venous catheter was inserted using point of care ultrasound guided method, compared to 192 controls. The primary outcome of correct placement of the central venous catheter tip was significantly higher in the point of care ultrasound guided group (97.6% vs 88.0% p = 0.001). Central venous catheter tip was located too low among 12% of patients in the control group while in only 2.4% of patients in the point of care ultrasound group (p = 0.001). Logistics regression analysis revealed that the correct placement of central venous catheter tip in the point of care ultrasound group versus the control group had an odds ratio of 4.9 (CI 1.6-14.5 P = 0.004).

Point of care ultrasound for guidewire identification and localization, while inserting central venous catheter from all upper torso sites, improves precision positioning.