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Umbilical artery catheterization in newborns. V. A clinical follow-up study
Insights
Long-term umbilical artery catheterization effects were studied in 49 children. Most children showed normal development, with minimal long-term impact from catheter-related thrombosis on leg growth and circulation.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal care
- Pediatric cardiology
- Vascular surgery
Background:
- Umbilical artery catheters (UACs) are crucial for neonatal intensive care.
- Catheter-related complications, such as thromboembolism, can occur.
- Long-term sequelae of UAC-related thrombosis require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the long-term effects of UAC use on children.
- To evaluate neurological development, peripheral circulation, and leg growth in infants with a history of UAC-related thrombosis.
Main Methods:
- Follow-up study of 49 children with UAC exposure.
- Assessment at 18 months included gross motor, neurological development, peripheral circulation, and leg growth.
- Infants with diagnosed neonatal thromboembolism underwent repeated strain-gauge plethysmography.
Main Results:
- One child with total iliac artery occlusion showed a 1.5 cm calf circumference difference at 18 months.
- Systolic blood pressure differences in the legs diminished over time.
- Only one infant maintained a significant blood pressure difference (>10 mmHg) at 12 months.
Conclusions:
- Most children with UAC exposure exhibit normal long-term development.
- Catheter-associated thrombosis has minimal long-term impact on leg growth and circulation.
- Early diagnosis and monitoring of UAC-related thrombosis are essential.
Abstract:
The long-term effects of umbilical artery catheterization were studied in forty-nine children. At the age of about 18 months their gross motor and neurological development, peripheral circulation, and growth of the legs were investigated. The infants with catheter-related thrombo-embolism in the legs diagnosed in the neonatal period with the aid of angiography and investigated by plethysmography were re-examined once or more during the first year of life by strain-guage plethysmography. One child who showed total occlusion of the iliac artery as newborn, had a difference in calf circumference at the 18-month examination of 1.5 cm, the only finding in this study related to catheter-associated thrombosis. In infants with neonatal thrombo-embolism in the legs the initial crural difference in systolic blood pressure diminished slowly, and at 12 months a blood-pressure difference of more than 10 mmHg remained in only one infant.