Umbilical catheter rupture

Abstract

Umbilical catheterization is commonly used as a route to provide medications and fluids to the neonates as well as for blood sampling and continuous monitoring. Although the rupture of umbilical catheters is considered as a rare, preventable complication, it has been reported several times in the literature. Healthcare providers need to be cautious with catheter placement, maintenance, and removal to prevent such a complication. Hereby, we review the literature about this complication after presenting two incidents of umbilical venous catheter rupture in two separate patients in our neonatal ICU. One was removed easily through the umbilical stump, whereas the other required surgical exploration.

Retrieval of a retained umbilical vein catheter at 6 months

“…Rarely, this complication can also occur after insertion of the catheter, where tight sutures can also cause fractures 3. The 18 cases currently in the literature are outlined in table 1 3–18. In our case, the incident was unreported during the neonatal period.…”

“…An interventional radiologist was present as a backup in case the catheter removal is not possible via the abdominal route. In six of the reported cases, an open exploration approach was employed 9 12 17 18. In three cases, the open approach was unsuccessful and the endovascular approach achieved retrieval 10 15 16.…”

Successful retrieval of deep intracardiac migrated broken umbilical venous catheter in a preterm infant: Case report

“…While an open surgical approach has been attempted in some instances, it has proven ineffective in certain reported cases as in our case [ 3 , 4 ]. Nevertheless, this approach becomes more feasible when dealing with a retained catheter fragment situated closer to the skin, nearer to the umbilicus [5] .…”

A case report of mispositioned bilateral catheterization of the umbilical arteries in a neonate and review of the literature

“…11 Arrhythmias and catheter rupture are rare but recognized complications. 12 Molanus et al 13 (BMJ 2017) reported a case of Umbilical Artery perforation following UAC which led to severe hemorrhagic shock, subsequent renal failure and severe periventricular leukomalacia. A case of transected segment of the UAC which migrated to the right internal iliac artery was reported by Doodnath R et al 14 in Journal of Neonatology 2022.…”