Prolonged Hemodialysis Catheter Survival With Copolymer Coating and Rt-PA

Surface thrombogenicity of standard double lumen catheters (stDLC) and surface modified film-coated domain structured double lumen catheters (fcDLC) consisting of a novel reactive polyurethane copolymer coating showed that in vitro measured surface thrombogenicity was reduced in the modified catheter compared with standard catheter. The clinical investigation revealed that both number of days before catheter removal according to clinical requirements and number of treatments per catheter were significantly higher with the modified catheter as compared with the standard catheter. Recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) has been used primarily to treat catheter thrombosis. The relatively high cost of rt-PA and its theoretical potential to cause bleeding, as well as the morbidity and mortality associated with catheter malfunction and infection, justify the need for more definitive evidence of the efficacy of rt-PA as a locking solution. No study aims to evaluate the impact of rt-PA locking in long-term Hemodialysis (HD) uncuffed catheters survival.