K
Keepercjr
Guest
This abstract may help ease your mind a bit even though they are referencing cancer patients who no longer use their ports (I'd say that patient subset is pretty similar to those of us w/CF who don't need frequent IVs).:
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<br />"Background: Little is known about proper interval periods between the flushings of totally implantable access ports after completion of chemotherapy. Manufacturer guidelines recommend flushing catheters every 4 weeks. Methods: This retrospective study examined whether flushing less than every 4 weeks conferred any benefit. Results: 349 totally implanted access ports were divided into four groups based on the different durations of the intervals between flushings. Sixteen (4.6%) complications were observed in the study population. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that extending the flushing interval to up to 4 months remains medically safe and drastically reduces the costs."
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<br />Here is the link: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://tinyurl.com/2e6vdyr">http://tinyurl.com/2e6vdyr</a>
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<br />"Background: Little is known about proper interval periods between the flushings of totally implantable access ports after completion of chemotherapy. Manufacturer guidelines recommend flushing catheters every 4 weeks. Methods: This retrospective study examined whether flushing less than every 4 weeks conferred any benefit. Results: 349 totally implanted access ports were divided into four groups based on the different durations of the intervals between flushings. Sixteen (4.6%) complications were observed in the study population. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that extending the flushing interval to up to 4 months remains medically safe and drastically reduces the costs."
<br />
<br />Here is the link: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://tinyurl.com/2e6vdyr">http://tinyurl.com/2e6vdyr</a>