[cherilee]

Hi . can anyone tell me what the difference between a mid line, a long line and a central line is? I know a central line Is in the vena cava, but where do these mid lines end? is a long line a central line? And how do you know if you have a Groshong? Any answers, appreciated
Lisa

[Tolos]

They are all differentiated by their hobs. See the left articles on this page, very helpful.

[iluvivt]

A midline catheter is greater than three inches long with its tip residing in the upper third of the arm. Because of this tip location are guidelines on what can and can not be infused through these lines. Anything,with a Ph less than 5 and greater than 9 and anything with an osmolality greater than 600 should not be given through these lines. I generally am not a fan of midlines. I would place them and come back the next day and find all kinds of irritants being infused through them,even though I left a list of unacceptable infusates. We rarely use them in our facility,we are heavy PICC users. A central venous catheter (CVC) is a catheter with its tip residing in the superior vena cava. A groshong (BARD )refers to a valve on the distal end of a catheter. The valve is referred as a two or three way valve. It is either open to infusion,in a neutral position or when drawing back (as in a blood draw) turned inward to allow for withdrawl. Find a picture and you will understand. There are many types of catheters made by BARD,that have a groshong valve. The benefit of the valve is that the line can be flushed weekly when not in use and if desired a saline only flush can be used.A potential benefit could also be a lower thrombosis rate and if that is lower,usually the infection rate is lower. The groshong catheter is also made of silicone,which is less thrombogenic than polyurethane catheters. Bard also makes a port with a groshong tip on the catheter