Enhancing the survival of tunneled haemodialysis catheters using an antibiotic lock in the elderly: A randomised, double-blind clinical trial

Background: Tunneled-cuffed catheters (TCC) are often used among the elderly to commence and carry out haemodialysis (HD). Complications like infection and thrombosis frequently reduce the lifespan of TCC. The role of an antibiotic heparin 'lock' in the prevention of thrombotic and infectious complications and enhancement of TCC survival in the elderly has not been investigated previously. Methods: In this prospective, double-blind clinical trial, TCC (n = 119, placed among 113 elderly patients requiring HD during March 2002 - February 2003) were randomised to either group I having TCC (n = 59, placed in 58 elderly patients) locked with cefotaxime (10 mg/mL) and heparin (5000 U/mL), or group II with TCC (n = 60, placed in 55 elderly patients) having catheter-restricted filling of heparin (5000 U/mL) alone. Symptomatic catheter-related blood stream infections (CRBSI) and catheter thrombosis were the primary end points in this study. Thrombosis was defined as an inability to use the catheter at a blood flow of 200 mL/min that did not respond to catheter repositioning and/or intraluminal thrombolysis. The incidence of catheter thrombosis, CRBSI and percentage of catheter survival were estimated and statistically compared between the two groups. Results: Kaplan-Meier survival analysis using log rank test showed higher thrombosis-free TCC survival (84.7% vs 63.3%, P = 0.021), infection-free survival (68.7% vs 31.3%, P < 0.001) and infection and thrombosis-free survival (65.0% vs 35.0%, P = 0.006) at 365 days in group I compared with group II. Conclusion: Cefotaxime and heparin locks safely and effectively enhance the lifespan of TCC by lowering the incidence of thrombotic and infectious complications among elderly end-stage renal failure (ESRD) patients.