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Clinicians often wish for a way to diagnose and treat venous catheter-related sepsis without removing the catheter, especially in patients with poor venous access. In a Spanish study, researchers compared three recently proposed strategies for diagnosing central catheter-related bacteremia while leaving the catheter in place.
Intensive care unit patients with clinically suspected catheter-related sepsis were evaluated by three indirect methods: (1) semiquantitative culture of swabs from the skin around the catheter and the catheter hub, (2) quantitative culture of blood drawn peripherally and through the catheter, and (3) assessment of time to blood culture positivity. In addition, catheters were removed, and tips were sent for semiquantitat…