title: Maintenance of peripheral venous access and its impact on the development of phlebitis: a survey of 186 catheters in a general surgery department in Portugal.
abstract: This article reports the results of a clinical audit conducted to assess the minimum requirements for safe maintenance of peripheral intravenous catheters. The audit also determined the incidence of phlebitis and attempted to establish a causal relationship between some of the variables used to assess a catheter's maintenance status and the development of phlebitis.
authors.affiliation: General Surgery Department, Divino Espírito Santo Hospital EPE, Azores, Portugal. furtado_luis@sapo.pt
authors.forename: Luís Carlos
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: do Rego Furtado
mesh_terms: D001132:Arm; D002406:Catheterization, Peripheral / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000451:nursing* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006225:Hand; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000451:nursing* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009731:Nursing Audit; D009736:Nursing Process; D010689:Phlebitis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011174:Portugal / Q000453:epidemiology; D013503:Surgery Department, Hospital