Help needed:Policy for CVL dressing Changes

Specialties NICU

Published

Specializes in NICU.

Hey everyone, I am in search of the latest policy used in your facility for CVL dressing changes. We are updating ours and hope to go to the chloroprep as opposed to alcohol and betadyne for our dressing changes. Any help on this topic would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks and God bless!

Specializes in NICU.

Let me clarify my question: do you use the betadyne and alcohol on your unit for CVL dressing changes....some research says this combo causes skin breakdown and we are in the process of trying to get the powers that be to change and let us use chloroprep solution for our CVL dressing changes. Also, right now we do these every 72 hrs and PRN. Any differences, comments, suggestions? Thanks!

Specializes in NICU, CVICU.

We use betadine only, no alcohol, and we do drsg changes every 5 days and prn. It seems to work well, I haven't seen any real skin issues unless the baby had skin problems before the line was placed.

Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

We use chlorprep and saline wipes. We adapted our policy from what the CDC recommends. For lines with gauze under the dressing it is 3 day change, for clear occlusive dressing only it is 7 days. Actually, we rarely, rarely use betadine for anything anymore, we use the chloraprep.

Use the CDC site and sign up for medscape for more articles, there is plenty of info out there :)

Specializes in NICU/Neonatal transport.

we aren't allowed to use chloraprep on anyone under 2 months of age (it's not approved for them)

We do alcohol, then iodine, let it dry for 2 min, then remove excess with sterile gauze.

I wish we could use chloraprep for all the babies.

Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

You can use it as long as you wipe off the excess. There is also a product called Dynahex that is 2% chloro.

Specializes in Level 3 NICU 17 yrs, Neo transport 13 yr.

we use alcohol and betadine and do a dressing change within 24 hours of the intial insertion, then q7days and prn.

Our NNP's insert and we have a PICC team that does the dressing changes. Currently our unit does betadine (3 swabs) and then saline wipes (3 to 6 wipes). NO ALCOHOL AND NO CHLOROPREP. We do dressing changes if it's bloody after the first 24 hours and then ONLY if it's bloody or non-occlusive. Don't fix what ain't broke. Though they typically get changed at least every 5 days because they become non-occlusive. We do a steri strip on the hub, never on the catheter, tegaderm (or opsite) it over the hub, then chevron with a steri strip at the end of the hub onto the tegaderm, and another steri stip over the end of the hub or start of the line onto the skin.

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