title: PICCs: how Doppler ultrasound can extend their use.
abstract: Peripherally inserted central catheters were relatively unknown in the UK five years ago. Now, however, they are used in more than 100 centres around the country. PICCs have played a key role in improving vascular access for a wide range of patients and the growth in their use has been nurse led. This article explains how nurses can help to extend the use of PICCs to a group of patients who have traditionally been excluded, those with apparently inaccessible antecubital fossa.
authors: Saint Mary's Hospital, Portsmouth.
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Gabriel
mesh_terms: D002405:Catheterization, Central Venous / Q000451:nursing*; D002406:Catheterization, Peripheral / Q000451:nursing*; D004550:Elbow / Q000098:blood supply; D006801:Humans; D018608:Ultrasonography, Doppler / Q000451:nursing*