CDC Features - Protecting Patients With Central Lines (pic lines)

"One type of infection, called a bloodstream infection, can happen when a doctor puts in a central line (a tube that goes into a large vein of a patient's body – usually chest or neck) to give medicine. If the central line or area around it gets dirty, germs can enter the patient's bloodstream and cause infection. Bloodstream infections in patients with central lines can be deadly, killing as many as 1 in 4 who gets them.

Healthcare providers in hospital intensive care units (ICUs) have been working for years to stop bloodstream infections in patients with central lines. A new CDC Vital Signs report shows that their efforts have been largely successful.....cont'd