Blood Stream Infections Related to Peripheral Intravenous Catheters

Background/Objectives: Several antimicrobial catheter site dressings currently claim to contribute to prevention of catheter related bloodstream infections (CRBSI). However, despite apparent or implied similarities, there may not be an equivalent clinical performance, or ‘class effect’, for these medical devices in clinical application. To this end, a comparative in vitro evaluation was performed of key physical and chemical properties that could impact performance in the clinical setting.