My facility will soon be trialing Arrow's line of PICCs. Does anyone have experience with Arrow's pressure injectable PICCs? What have been your likes or dislikes?
I am a sales rep for Arrow and have a customer that would be happy to speak to you about her experience with the Arrow pressure PICC. She had previously used Bard for many years and has now been using Arrow for over a year. She is unfortunately on vacation until Aug. 8th, so I could let her know to contact you when she returns, if you'd like. Please feel to reach out and let me know.
We have been using Arrow picc's for about 2 months and are quite impressed with them. They have a very nice atramatic tip, and no reverse taper which should reduce the incidence of arm thrombus. We haven't used them long enough to be sure of this but they seem to develop fewer occlusions. The only thing we haven't liked is the introducer wire. Hopefully they will make some changes with that.
Thank you, I appreciate the feedback. I'm interested in your input on the wire as one issue we've had with our current PICC (we use the Bard PowerPICC) is the wire stiffness. Is the arrow wire stiff or too flimsy?
We think the wire is a little stiff and if it get a little bend in it, the bend stays there. I prefer a soft end with gradual stiffening and doesn't retain a bend so easily. I hope we are talking about the same wire. I am talking about the short spring-wire guide. The wire in the picc is just fine.
Stephanie, thanks for your reply. We're starting our trial this week so we'll have a good experience of our own...but I appreciate the offer. We also use the Bard powerpicc....it sounds like the switch has been uneventful? Any information you could share with me about their experience with the two catheters would be great.
Our facility has used arrow products for 3 decades. I do not place PICCs, IR department performed the insertions. The tip of the catheters are atramatic and tapered. The tip is blue, which makes for a quick assessment to make sure the catheter is intact upon removal. There are two negatives with the product. The first, the lumen clamps are slide clamps which easily be removed. A replacement clamp is expensive. The second, the PICCs come in three lengths. There can be as much as 15 cm of tubing exiting the skin (providing the catheter is not trimmed which negates the atramatic tip and staggered ends). Dressing changes can be challenging. Good luck with your trials.
Have you talked with your Sales Rep and Clinical Specialist?
I am a Clinical Specialist for Teleflex, parent company of the Arrow brand of products and PICCs. In response to your valid concerns regarding the slide clamp, I would like to offer an explaination. A slide clamp is the only clamp that completely clamps a polyurethane PICC. If you close a push clamp, you can slide it up and down the extention set. If it slides then fluid can get past it, and the possibilty exists for blood reflux also. Since the slide clamp does not slide up and down when closed, fluid cannot get past and the possiblity for blood reflux is less also. If you would like extra slide clamps, please discuss with your Teleflex Sales Rep and/or Clinical Specialist, we can help you with this.
You also bring up a great point regarding dressing changes. Since the Arrow PICCs come in 3 lenghts, (40cm, 50cm, and 55cm), there needs to be a way to secure external length if the catheter is not trimmed to length. In each catheter kit there is included a box clamp that helps to manage external length. The box clamp can be added to the PICC to create a new "hub" that can be secured close to the insertion site with suture or Statlock then the remainder of the catheter can be looped under the dressing. This is a new type of dressing for hospitals who switch, as this box clamp is not seen with any other brand of PICC, and we at Teleflex realize this and offer training and education to your staff at no cost. Please reach out to your clinical specialist and/or sales rep and set up some additional education for your hospital staff regarding managing the dressing of the PICCs. At many hospitals we provide this education annually or semi-annually.
Have you talked with your Sales Rep and Clinical Specialist?
I am a Clinical Specialist for Teleflex, parent company of the Arrow brand of products and PICCs. In response to your valid concerns regarding the slide clamp, I would like to offer an explaination. A slide clamp is the only clamp that completely clamps a polyurethane PICC. If you close a push clamp, you can slide it up and down the extention set. If it slides then fluid can get past it, and the possibilty exists for blood reflux also. Since the slide clamp does not slide up and down when closed, fluid cannot get past and the possiblity for blood reflux is less also. If you would like extra slide clamps, please discuss with your Teleflex Sales Rep and/or Clinical Specialist, we can help you with this.
You also bring up a great point regarding dressing changes. Since the Arrow PICCs come in 3 lenghts, (40cm, 50cm, and 55cm), there needs to be a way to secure external length if the catheter is not trimmed to length. In each catheter kit there is included a box clamp that helps to manage external length. The box clamp can be added to the PICC to create a new "hub" that can be secured close to the insertion site with suture or Statlock then the remainder of the catheter can be looped under the dressing. This is a new type of dressing for hospitals who switch, as this box clamp is not seen with any other brand of PICC, and we at Teleflex realize this and offer training and education to your staff at no cost. Please reach out to your clinical specialist and/or sales rep and set up some additional education for your hospital staff regarding managing the dressing of the PICCs. At many hospitals we provide this education annually or semi-annually.
We have been using this product for years. The colored tip is much appreciated by the nurse who is removing the catheter. Be careful because you cannot use the stiffening wire that comes inside the catheter to direct the catheter at all. If you try to put a gentle curve on what happens is the wire will not hold up. Arrow does sell another wire separartely which is directable. This is a bit difficult, because if you get into the jugular and just want a gentle bend to prevent this, you have to add the separate wire to your field. We have very few thrombus problems, and our doctors think the cone tip is useful, less traumatic insertion. I am a radiology nurse and have no affiliation with any specific products. Hope your trial goes well, try to compare your occlusion rates to the number of occlusions w other catheters, if possible.
So, using the arrow piccs which have clamps we were told we could use heparin or not use heparin and to do whatever our hospital policy said. Shouldn't there be a manufacturer's recommendation? I was always taught if there's a clamp you were supposed to use heparin. Please help. thanks
Use of heparin is not dictated by the presence or absence of a clamp. It is dictated by standards and guidelines. INS recommends locking with NS for short peripheral catheters, but heparin 10 units per mL is still recommended for all other VADs. See the standard on Flushing and Locking. I believe all catheters should be clamped when not in use. Clamping depends on the type of needleless connector being used - negative fluid displacement = flush, close clamp, then disconnect syringe; positive fluid displacement = flush, disconnect, then clamp; neutral fluid displacement = clamp either before or after syringe disconnection. Lynn
I am a sales rep for Arrow and have a customer that would be happy to speak to you about her experience with the Arrow pressure PICC. She had previously used Bard for many years and has now been using Arrow for over a year. She is unfortunately on vacation until Aug. 8th, so I could let her know to contact you when she returns, if you'd like. Please feel to reach out and let me know.
Stephanie
We have been using Arrow picc's for about 2 months and are quite impressed with them. They have a very nice atramatic tip, and no reverse taper which should reduce the incidence of arm thrombus. We haven't used them long enough to be sure of this but they seem to develop fewer occlusions. The only thing we haven't liked is the introducer wire. Hopefully they will make some changes with that.
Thank you, I appreciate the feedback. I'm interested in your input on the wire as one issue we've had with our current PICC (we use the Bard PowerPICC) is the wire stiffness. Is the arrow wire stiff or too flimsy?
We think the wire is a little stiff and if it get a little bend in it, the bend stays there. I prefer a soft end with gradual stiffening and doesn't retain a bend so easily. I hope we are talking about the same wire. I am talking about the short spring-wire guide. The wire in the picc is just fine.
Stephanie, thanks for your reply. We're starting our trial this week so we'll have a good experience of our own...but I appreciate the offer. We also use the Bard powerpicc....it sounds like the switch has been uneventful? Any information you could share with me about their experience with the two catheters would be great.
Our facility has used arrow products for 3 decades. I do not place PICCs, IR department performed the insertions. The tip of the catheters are atramatic and tapered. The tip is blue, which makes for a quick assessment to make sure the catheter is intact upon removal. There are two negatives with the product. The first, the lumen clamps are slide clamps which easily be removed. A replacement clamp is expensive. The second, the PICCs come in three lengths. There can be as much as 15 cm of tubing exiting the skin (providing the catheter is not trimmed which negates the atramatic tip and staggered ends). Dressing changes can be challenging. Good luck with your trials.
I am a Clinical Specialist for Teleflex, parent company of the Arrow brand of products and PICCs. In response to your valid concerns regarding the slide clamp, I would like to offer an explaination. A slide clamp is the only clamp that completely clamps a polyurethane PICC. If you close a push clamp, you can slide it up and down the extention set. If it slides then fluid can get past it, and the possibilty exists for blood reflux also. Since the slide clamp does not slide up and down when closed, fluid cannot get past and the possiblity for blood reflux is less also. If you would like extra slide clamps, please discuss with your Teleflex Sales Rep and/or Clinical Specialist, we can help you with this.
You also bring up a great point regarding dressing changes. Since the Arrow PICCs come in 3 lenghts, (40cm, 50cm, and 55cm), there needs to be a way to secure external length if the catheter is not trimmed to length. In each catheter kit there is included a box clamp that helps to manage external length. The box clamp can be added to the PICC to create a new "hub" that can be secured close to the insertion site with suture or Statlock then the remainder of the catheter can be looped under the dressing. This is a new type of dressing for hospitals who switch, as this box clamp is not seen with any other brand of PICC, and we at Teleflex realize this and offer training and education to your staff at no cost. Please reach out to your clinical specialist and/or sales rep and set up some additional education for your hospital staff regarding managing the dressing of the PICCs. At many hospitals we provide this education annually or semi-annually.
Thanks for contributing to this forum.
Chris Cavanaugh, RN, BSN, CRNI, VA-BC
I am a Clinical Specialist for Teleflex, parent company of the Arrow brand of products and PICCs. In response to your valid concerns regarding the slide clamp, I would like to offer an explaination. A slide clamp is the only clamp that completely clamps a polyurethane PICC. If you close a push clamp, you can slide it up and down the extention set. If it slides then fluid can get past it, and the possibilty exists for blood reflux also. Since the slide clamp does not slide up and down when closed, fluid cannot get past and the possiblity for blood reflux is less also. If you would like extra slide clamps, please discuss with your Teleflex Sales Rep and/or Clinical Specialist, we can help you with this.
You also bring up a great point regarding dressing changes. Since the Arrow PICCs come in 3 lenghts, (40cm, 50cm, and 55cm), there needs to be a way to secure external length if the catheter is not trimmed to length. In each catheter kit there is included a box clamp that helps to manage external length. The box clamp can be added to the PICC to create a new "hub" that can be secured close to the insertion site with suture or Statlock then the remainder of the catheter can be looped under the dressing. This is a new type of dressing for hospitals who switch, as this box clamp is not seen with any other brand of PICC, and we at Teleflex realize this and offer training and education to your staff at no cost. Please reach out to your clinical specialist and/or sales rep and set up some additional education for your hospital staff regarding managing the dressing of the PICCs. At many hospitals we provide this education annually or semi-annually.
Thanks for contributing to this forum.
Chris Cavanaugh, RN, BSN, CRNI, VA-BC
We have been using this product for years. The colored tip is much appreciated by the nurse who is removing the catheter. Be careful because you cannot use the stiffening wire that comes inside the catheter to direct the catheter at all. If you try to put a gentle curve on what happens is the wire will not hold up. Arrow does sell another wire separartely which is directable. This is a bit difficult, because if you get into the jugular and just want a gentle bend to prevent this, you have to add the separate wire to your field. We have very few thrombus problems, and our doctors think the cone tip is useful, less traumatic insertion. I am a radiology nurse and have no affiliation with any specific products. Hope your trial goes well, try to compare your occlusion rates to the number of occlusions w other catheters, if possible.
Celia Brown
So, using the arrow piccs which have clamps we were told we could use heparin or not use heparin and to do whatever our hospital policy said. Shouldn't there be a manufacturer's recommendation? I was always taught if there's a clamp you were supposed to use heparin. Please help. thanks
Use of heparin is not dictated by the presence or absence of a clamp. It is dictated by standards and guidelines. INS recommends locking with NS for short peripheral catheters, but heparin 10 units per mL is still recommended for all other VADs. See the standard on Flushing and Locking. I believe all catheters should be clamped when not in use. Clamping depends on the type of needleless connector being used - negative fluid displacement = flush, close clamp, then disconnect syringe; positive fluid displacement = flush, disconnect, then clamp; neutral fluid displacement = clamp either before or after syringe disconnection. Lynn
Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RN, CRNI
Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc.
PO Box 10
Milner, GA 30257
Website http://www.hadawayassociates.com
Office Phone 770-358-7861
I am curious on how the trial went since the last posting in 2011? Pros, cons?
Kayla C. Williams