Two scientific poster presentations on InVision-Plus connectors featured at SHEA meeting

Two scientific poster presentations that demonstrate the infection prevention capabilities of InVision-Plus® with Neutral Advantage™ technology were featured at the annual conference of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA).

“These two studies confirm the careful thinking and research that have gone into InVision-Plus connectors”

Both studies show InVision-Plus connectors to be more effective than other connectors in preventing contamination by bacteria known to cause catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI). The SHEA meeting was held March 18-22 in Atlanta.

One study compared the ability of five needleless connectors, including InVision-Plus with Neutral Advantage technology, to prevent contamination by four different microorganisms that are significant causes of CRBSI. Each of the connectors was swabbed, filled with blood, flushed with saline and then repeatedly inoculated with the four bacterial strains throughout the four-day test period.

InVision-Plus outperformed the other connectors by having the lowest bacteria counts at the conclusion of testing.

“This study is significant for several reasons,” said lead researcher Cynthia Chernecky, Ph.D., RN, AOCN, FAAN. “Needleless connectors are designed to protect the catheter’s fluid pathway from bacteria that can cause CRBSI. Our study showed that InVision-Plus did this more effectively than a luer-activated split septum device and two other connectors whose manufacturers state they have anti-reflux technology.

“Prior to this, there have been very few comparative studies of needleless connectors,” Chernecky added. “There have been even fewer studies under conditions that simulate actual clinical conditions when aspirating blood, as ours did. So this study’s results may be more significant than those produced by less realistic research designs.”

Chernecky is a Professor of Physiological and Technological Nursing at the Medical College of Georgia’s School of Nursing.

Of the five connectors used in the study, one was a positive pressure mechanical valve device, meaning that blood will reflux negatively, or flow backwards into the catheter, initially upon connection to the catheter. One was a split septum device, and two are claimed by their manufacturers to prevent blood reflux. The InVision-Plus is designed to prevent blood reflux.

Blood reflux coats the inner walls of the catheter lumen with blood. This can lead to the formation of biofilm, the bacterial aggregation that is a precursor to CRBSI.

The second study presented at SHEA used similar methodology and compared another manufacturer’s silver-coated connector to two different versions of the InVision-Plus. One version was the standard non-antimicrobial InVision-Plus, while the other was the InVision-Plus with chlorhexidine silver engineering. The latter device has not yet received FDA clearance.

Both InVision-Plus connectors significantly outperformed the antimicrobial connector with silver coating, which produced 2.5 to 200 times more bacteria over time than either of the InVision-Plus connectors. In fact, InVision-Plus with chlorhexidine silver impregnation produced no consistent bacteria during the test period.

“Technological design is a crucial factor in preventing CRBSI,” said Chernecky, “as shown by the fact that even the non-antimicrobial InVision-Plus was more effective than the silver-coated (not silver-impregnated) connector.

“The other important finding here is that silver plus chlorhexidine may be the formulation needed to best prevent CRBSI. It has previously been established that silver treatment alone is not sufficient to prevent CRBSI. This study underlined that finding and may have identified a solution to the problem.”

CRBSI are one of the leading hospital-acquired infections and one of the nation’s leading killers overall. They are fatal in up to 25% of cases and cost tens of thousands of dollars to treat, driving up the cost of healthcare.

“These two studies confirm the careful thinking and research that have gone into InVision-Plus connectors,” said Dana Wm. Ryan, RyMed’s President, CEO and Chairman of the Board. “These presentations at SHEA will help spread the word about the value of the current InVision-Plus and the potential availability of an even more potent device to protect patients against CRBSI.”

The studies, which documented testing that was conducted by an independent laboratory, were presented at SHEA’s 2010 decennial meeting. InVision-Plus connectors are made by RyMed Technologies, Inc.