InVision-Plus IV Connector Reduces Infections, New Research Reports

The InVision-Plus® needleless IV connector helped three different organizations sharply reduce and in some cases completely eliminate central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), according to three poster presentations that will be presented at AVA 2010, the annual scientific meeting of the Association for Vascular Access.

Among the posters is one from Methodist Extended Care Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., which tested three different connector designs for their effectiveness in preventing CR-BSI in its long-term acute care facility.

The three connector types tested were a split septum connector (SS); negative pressure mechanical valve (NPMV); and InVision-Plus. InVision-Plus far outperformed the other connector types in the Methodist study. Use of the SS device produced a CLABSI rate of 6.0/1,000 catheter days. The rate for the NPMV device was 3.3/1,000 catheter days. InVision-Plus was the only connector that produced an acceptable rate by today's standards: 0.49/1,000, including a zero rate for the final 17 months of the test period even though Methodist studied a patient population that is more infection-prone than most.

"Many hospitals across the nation are trying but failing to significantly reduce their CLABSI rate," said Debra Lynch, RN, BSN, the poster's author. "We drove our rate to zero simply by using a connector with a superior, safer design. Our study indicates that choosing an appropriate connector design that protects the intraluminal pathway is critical to preventing CLABSI."

Another of the three posters at AVA is from researchers at a nationally prominent cancer center in Houston, Tex., which trialed InVision-Plus to reduce its CLABSI rate. During the 14-week trial, use of InVision-Plus dropped the center's infection rate by more than 90 percent.

The third poster is from Carolina Vascular Wellness (CVW), which serves the mid-Atlantic region. In January 2008, CVW adopted various best practices and evidence-based technologies to prevent CLABSI, including InVision-Plus. Since the implementation of this approach, no CVW patient has suffered a CLABSI. The zero rate encompasses 496 peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) as of April 30, 2010, the last month for which data is available. The co-authors of CVW's poster are Stephen Harris, RN, CRNI, BA and Deb Elixon RN, CRNI.

CLABSI are one of the leading hospital-acquired infections and one of the nations leading killers overall. They are fatal in up to 25 percent of cases and cost an estimated $34,000 to $56,000 per incident to treat, according to the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. They also increase a patients hospital stay by seven days on average. Hospitals now bear much of this cost because the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and many private insurers no longer reimburse for the infections.

AVA 2010 will be held Sept. 24-26 at the Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center in National Harbor, Md.

RyMed Technologies will be at Booth 135 in the exhibit hall at AVA 2010.