Milking those chest tube: I need your opinion

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I know it's a case to case basis. Can you share your experience? What about those blake tubes... those are not so friendly to do... or not to anyways.

Taz.

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Milking Chest tubes is not a recommended practice. It increases pressure and can cause tissue damage.

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I understand that. I truly do. But....!!!! Is it not, on those very moment when you got to do what you've got to... when a PACU nurse has to fix the problem ... as that is mostly our forte is (I think) ... how safely should it be done??

Oh well.

I guess we just have to be just really really truly really careful on the actions we take.

Thank you!

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Advice from our expert friends at www.icufaqs.org:

Chest Tubes

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I work on the CSICU where we routinely are required to 'strip' blakes to keep them flowing, especially in the first few hours fresh post op cardiac surgery. We use alcohol swabs or the gel you use for dopplers and quickly, but carefully strip the tube so it flows well. There hasn't been a problem that I am aware of on the unit concerning stripping of chest tubes, but I understand it could happen.

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Specializes in PACU/GI/CDIS??.

love your username :) despite the sad sad times...

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Specializes in cardiac, PACU, some CVICU.

Research says you should avoid milking or stripping chest tubes. It's "old school" nursing, a bad habit, and one that needs to be phased out. Use the evidence based practice.

http://ccn.aacnjournals.org/cgi/content/full/22/4/70

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/566590

http://ats.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/42/1/77

http://icvts.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/full/7/5/888

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