I have a Broviac which looks just like your PICC did only it's in my chest. I think you will find having the port much easier. The nurse even commented that she hadn't seen one 'give up' that much stuff. The stuff they pulled out was really awful looking. It did have to be withdrawn.apparently if you don't need the meds in your system it's best to withdraw them. Finally it was really hard and I had to go to the IV clinic to the 'clot busting' or tpa treatment. It was getting a little hard to flush and my nurses were telling me to keep trying. After 3 months I had my Broviac inserted in my chest. It always felt like something was 'wrong' with my arm. I was started with PICC line and really, really didn't like it. It is likely for life as I have intestinal failure due to radiation treatments for colon cancer 12 years ago. I don't know if others are able to flush the Alteplase right through the line or not. Therefore, I have to make sure to do a thorough flushing of the line after withdrawing the med, as there is usually blood back in the line, but this seems to work. In my daughter's case, her physicians want the alteplase removed from the line before any further infusions take place, as they do not want it in her body. We keep an adequate supply at home, on prescription, and do not have to go in to the doctor for it. I use it regularly once per month in both of my daughter's CVL lumens, as well as at any other time when it appears to be slowing down/blocking. As far as I know, the only approved agent for central lines is Alteplase (CathFlo). They are particularly helpful for lines that are blocked by blood accumulations/clots. Do you use any thrombolytic agents in your line? These are useful to help unclog sluggish or resistant lines, and can even unblock completely blocked lines at times, depending on the reason for the blockage. Some meds also interact poorly with others and can seriously block the lumens. We have the same problem, especially after blood draws, but also in relation to certain medications leaving an accumulating residue inside the lumens.
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