• Seyyed Mostajab Razavinejad, Najib Saeed, Shahnaz Pourarian, Mehrdad Rezaei, Reza Bahrami, Negar Yazdani, Hamide Barzegar, and Fatemeh Yarmahmoodi.
• Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Neonatal Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
• Arch Iran Med. 2023 Apr 1; 26 (4): 218225218-225.

BackgroundPeripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) are an effective method for medication and nutrition infusion in preterm neonates. The present study aimed to identify the incidence of the most common complications of PICC implantation and evaluate the risk factors of each complication.MethodsThis historical cohort study was conducted on 2500 neonates with birth weights (BWs)≥500 g and gestational age (GA)>24 weeks who had a history of PICC inserted in three NICUs between August 2015 and August 2018. Data were collected by reviewing medical records. Demographic data and indices of catheter placement, duration of catheter placement, and common complications were recorded. Data analysis was done using SPSS-21.ResultsThe median cubital vein had the most PICC placement (43%). The most common complication was tip malposition (48.2%). The incidence rates (95% CI) of the main complications such as malposition, edema/occlusion, and PICC migration were 0.0356 (0.0337-0.0377), 0.0134 (0.0122-0.0147), and 0.0088 (0.0079-0.0099), respectively. PICC insertion position was the strongest predictor of malposition for the cephalic vein. Besides, the incidence of malformation in the cephalic vein was about six times higher than in the median cubital vein. Independent risk factors for non-technical complications included BW (OR=0.59, 95% CI 0.44-0.79), administration of hyperosmolar medications (OR=3.43, 95% CI 2.62-4.51), position (OR=2.43, 95% CI 1.92- 3.08), and duration of catheter presence (OR=1.02, 95% CI 1.01-1.03) (P<0.001).ConclusionThe most common complication was malposition related to catheter placement in an emergency. Moreover, BW, administration of hyperosmolar medications, and duration of catheter presence were the most critical risk factors for non-technical complications. Therefore, it is recommended to educate the PICC insertion team to reduce tip malposition and replace long-term catheters.© 2023 The Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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