I have a desperate question and I was worrying the situation so much that I can't sleep.
I had difficulty to remove a port-a-cath needle yesterday. The needle eventually came out but I'm not sure why I had difficulty. Now I'm scared maybe because I didn't stabilized the port-a-cath enough, and by pulling too hard I may cause damage or dislodgement to the port-a-cath.
So my questions are:
1. What are the chances that the port-a-cath will be damaged or dislodged due to not stabilize it enough when removing the needle or pull the needle too hard?
2. What are the sign on the skin of a damaged or dislodged port-a-cath?
I've worked with port-a-cath before and never have difficulty in removing the needle. I'm not an oncology nurse so I was hoping to have some opinions from the experts. I really really appreciate your input
Everyone should be using safety equipment... Whether that be phlebotomy, IV start or port access needles... ALL must have a safety design, either passive or active. There really isn't any excuse not to use them. Implanted ports all require non-coring needles, which as Flying Scott said, will have their tip bent, but that is the NON-CORING aspect of the needle to assist in damage prevention for the port's septum.
Hi I work in the UK and our ports seem a little different to yours. However I have had it often when removing needles from my paediatric patients that it sticks. Sometimes it's when you aren't holding the port when you are pulling the needle out which you must always do to avoid damage to the skin. Secondly the needle itself can become bent inside the port making it difficult to pull out. You will only know if it is damaged if there is any irritation or swelling to the site which isn't normal for that patient and secondly if when it is next accessed the needle won't go in to the port correctly or will not flush and bleed back. In this case a chest X-ray will identify a problem with the device.
IVRUS, BSN, RN
1,049 Posts
Everyone should be using safety equipment... Whether that be phlebotomy, IV start or port access needles... ALL must have a safety design, either passive or active. There really isn't any excuse not to use them. Implanted ports all require non-coring needles, which as Flying Scott said, will have their tip bent, but that is the NON-CORING aspect of the needle to assist in damage prevention for the port's septum.