Download [TK date], 2009 - RyMed Technologies

July 11, 2013
Contact: Liz Dowling, (415) 388-2794
Dowling & Dennis Public Relations
E-mail: [email protected]
Research on RyMed Zero Displacement IV
Connectors Featured at Three Conferences
Connectors Linked to Success Reducing Bloodstream Infection Rates
FRANKLIN, Tenn. – RyMed Technologies’ needleless IV connectors were the
focus of three scientific presentations at recent medical conferences. All three posters
described the patient safety advantages of the RyMed connectors (also known as end
caps, hubs or valves).
One poster described the use of the InVision-Plus CS® with Chlorhexidine+Silver
Ion Engineering at University of Louisville Hospital, in Louisville, Ky. At the beginning of
the study, the hospital’s Bone Marrow Transplant Unit had a much higher bloodstream
infection (BSI) rate than the hospital’s other units, apparently because of its patients’
extreme vulnerability to BSIs.
Hoping to minimize the infections, the unit began InVision-Plus CS in August
2012. Data from the first eight months of use showed that the CS connector was
associated with a 36% reduction in the BSI rate as compared to the previous eight
months. The implementation was supported with staff and patient education.
The poster was presented at the Association for Professionals in Infection
Control and Epidemiology (APIC) 40th Annual Conference, held June 8–10 in Ft.
Lauderdale, Fla. Michelle Perry, RN, BSN, OCN, and Linda Goss, MSN, APRN, CIC, COHNS, co-authored the poster. Perry is the hospital’s Clinical Nurse Manager and Goss was
Director of Infection Control and head of its Vascular Access Specialist Team.
A second poster, presented at the Infusion Nurses Society (INS) 2013 Annual
Convention, described an infographic (visual aid) created to educate infusion-nursing
clinicians about how IV connector design can influence BSI risk. The poster included the
potential patient safety aspects of the zero displacement connector.
The infographic contrasted InVision-Plus® with flawed design elements of
negative and positive displacement connectors, which many experts believe increase BSI
risk.
The poster was by Julia Wagner, MS, BSN, RN, CCRN, VA-BC. Wagner is the
Critical Care and PICC/IV Program Coordinator at a 125-bed hospital in the Denver area.
The INS conference took place May 18–23 in Charlotte, N.C.
The third poster described its authors’ Healthcare and Technology Synergy
(HATS) model, which creates a framework for considering the influence a patient,
product technology, and practice have on each other. The poster assessed the HATS
model’s usefulness for factors such as oncology nursing research; development of
evidence-based nursing interventions; and product evaluation for oncology patients.
The poster used research by the authors on IV connectors, including an in vitro
study and a clinical study, to illustrate the value of the model. In the in vitro research,
InVision-Plus performed approximately 4.5 times better than the next best-performing
connector studied in protecting against bacterial growth. It performed approximately
64.5 times better than the worst-performing connector in the study. A total of five
connectors, including InVision-Plus®, were tested.
In the clinical study, the BSI rate with InVision-Plus® was approximately one-third
of the BSI rate of a negative displacement connector and nearly one-quarter of the BSI
rate of a positive displacement connector. The study encompassed 121,999 line days.
The authors of the poster were Cynthia Chernecky, PhD, RN, AOCN, FAAN; Julie
Zadinsky, PhD, RN; Denise Macklin, BSN, RNC, VA-BC; and M. Katherine Maeve, PhD, RN.
The poster was presented at the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) 38th Annual Congress,
held April 25-28 in Washington, D.C.
InVision-Plus® connectors were designed to avoid design issues in previous
connector types that potentially increase BSI risk. The connector has a straight fluid
pathway with no dead spaces so it is easy to flush clean. Other connector types can trap
blood in the pathway, leading to bacteria colonization.
Resources:
Video:
* Infection Rates Drop at Major Cancer Center
Text:
*Description of a study involving cancer patients that compares a zero displacement IV
needleless connector (InVision-Plus) to a negative-pressure, split-septum connector
*Article by Sophie Harnage, RN, BSN, VA-BC, describing the Sutter Roseville Medical
Center central line bundle in detail. Sutter has gone more than seven and one half years
without a BSI, using a bundle that includes InVision-Plus.
*Article by William Jarvis, M.D., on design features of IV needleless connectors that are
important for preventing CRBSIs
About RyMed Technologies, Inc.
Founded in 1994, RyMed Technologies, Inc. specializes in the development and
marketing of innovative safety products in the field of intravenous catheter care
management. The company's products are designed to help reduce catheter occlusions,
catheter-related bloodstream infections, and biofilm development commonly
associated with vascular access devices. More than 10 years of research and
development have gone into the InVision-Plus product line. Numerous studies regarding
the efficacy of the InVision-Plus Needleless IV Connector have been published in the last
six years -- which is particularly important in light of the growing incidence of catheterrelated bloodstream infections (CRBSIs).
For more information, access www.rymedtech.com or call (615) 790-8093. The
company is headquartered in Franklin, Tenn.
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