Application of upper arm totally implantable venous access ports in 34 patients with tumor

Objective To investigate the safety, feasibility and clinical application effect of upper arm totally implantable venous access port (TIVAP) inserted by the combination of oncologists and nurses in patients with tumor. Methods A total of 34 patients, who needed long-term transfusion treatment, were included in this study with upper arm TIVAP from March 2017 and December 2017. There were 20 males and 14 females. The median age was 63 (35~83) years. Upper arm TIVAP was implanted by both doctors and nurses into the patients with tumor, and the TIVAP related success rate, complications and patients satisfaction were recorded. Results 34 patients all succeeded in TIVAP implantation with the operation success rate of 100%. The average operation time was about 40 minutes (30 to 60 minutes) from the disinfecting cloth to the end of the suture. The operations of all patients were successful. After the operation two patients died of cancer progression, one patient had soft tissue infection around capsular bag, None of the patients had other complications such as blocked infusion, catheter shift, port reversal, and so on, and the incidence of complication was 2.94%(1/34). Conclusions Upper arm TIVAP has the advantages of safe puncture, shorter operation time, few intra-operative and post-operative complications and higher feasibility for operation by both oncologist and nurse, which can supplement the limitations and deficiencies of the chest wall port and PICC in a certain extent, therefore is a good choice for clinical application. Key words: Upper arm; Totally implantable access port; Cancer