An umbilical venous catheter complication presented as acute abdomen. Case report

Abstract

Umbilical venous catheterization has become a widely accepted intravenous route for premature babies. These catheters allow administration of parenteral nutrition and medication and facilitate blood sampling. Besides these benefits, they also have significant potential complications like portal vein thrombosis, infection, vascular or hepatic injury, arrhythmia and sepsis. One of the rare but important complication is extravasation of the fluids due to misplacement of the catheter. The typical symptoms of this condition are sudden deterioration, hepatic enlargement, hematocrit drop, hypotension and abdominal distension. We herein present a premature newborn with unusual acute abdomen findings suggesting a surgical pathology after the extravasation of total parenteral nutrition into the abdomen.

Umbilical Catheter Extravasation Mimicking Necrotizing Enterocolitis in a Preterm Neonate: A Diagnostic Challenge

“…Due to the potential for both benefit and harm associated with UVC removal timing, they suggested the need for a pragmatic randomized controlled trial comparing early planned removal with expectant management to provide more conclusive insights into this matter [5]. The increased risk of malpositioning, infection, and hepatic extravasation underscores the importance of regularly reassessing the necessity of UVCs and considering alternative central access methods if prolonged use is anticipated [2,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]. Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) emerge as a viable alternative, as demonstrated in a study conducted by Lloreda-García JM and colleagues [14].…”

Portal vein thrombosis in a 10-month-old infant as a complication of neonatal umbilical catheterization: a case report

“…These catheters are used for the administration of parenteral medication and nutrition. However, they have complications like infection, PVT, hepatic or vascular injury, arrhythmia, and sepsis 8 . In our case, the umbilical catheter is used for the administration of parenteral medication for sepsis treatment, and we suspect that it caused the PVT after denying any thrombotic disorder based on laboratory values of blood analyses.…”