The impact of taurolock versus heparin lock for the maintenance of central vein catheters patency in pediatric tertiary care hospitals

Central vein access is a common procedure in infants and neonates. In this regard, cutdown is a common central venous access technique. However, it is associated with complications, including catheter occlusion, infection, and spontaneous withdrawal. Catheter occlusion is a common complication of the cutdown procedure and causes catheter dysfunction and subsequent catheter removal. In this study, we compared the effect of heparin lock with Taurolock on the maintenance of central vein catheter potency placed in the greater saphenous vein at the saphenofemoral junction and their subsequent complications.

The children admitted to the pediatric hospital who required central vein access between December 2015 and July 2019 were recruited. There were two groups of patients. The first group received 0.5 mL Taurolock solution. The solution contains (cyclo)-taurolidine, heparin 500 IU/mL, and citrate (4%) before the catheter gets locked (Taurolock group). Another group received 0.5 mL heparin (contains 500 IU/mL heparin) before the catheter lock (heparin lock group). After the treatment period, the average duration of catheter usage and heparin-induced bleeding complications were evaluated.

The average duration of catheter function was 13.4 days and 9.3 days in the Taurolock group, and the heparin lock group, respectively. The coagulation tests were performed on 179 patients (33.9%) during hospitalization, no heparin-induced coagulopathies were reported.

Using Taurolock after catheter use could significantly reduce catheter occlusion and increase the duration of catheter function. Taurolock reduces costs, prevents delays in treatment, and decreases pain sensation and discomfort in patients.