Should I get a Picc line or the cathiter right over the heart? Why?
Posted by tic chick (Member # 9156) on :
Anyone, please.
Posted by Razzle (Member # 30398) on :
There are pros and cons to both types.
PICC lines are safer - no surgery to place, just local anesthetic; can be pulled easily if the line gets infected.
But PICC's are a lot harder to deal with day-to-day because it is harder to take a shower and there are restrictions on what you can do with the arm that has the PICC.
I'd recommend discussing the pros & cons with your doctor.
Posted by ktkdommer (Member # 29020) on :
In hindsight, I may have preferred a catheter over the PICC for my 15 year old. He has had 2 that have cracked and had to be replaced. Then he had one literally fall out in his sleep as a new nurse didn't do the stat lock properly. I am tired of wrapping his arm to shower. Now I'm wondering about swimming this summer with friends. We didn't know IV antibiotics would run almost a year. Another negative is the allergic reaction to tapes and bandages.
Posted by racer (Member # 30438) on :
I have the thoughts as Kari. Not sure if our doctor would have gone with the catheter when my son's PICC was put in.
I'm not totally sure how other catheters work, but I think you have to use adhesives etc. to have port accessed (changed weekly I think?).
My son has very sensitive skin - so it seems that nothing we do allows him to take showers. Baths only, and hair washing is difficult (we have to help - imagine that indignity for a teen).