Effectiveness of topical interventions to prevent or treat intravenous therapy‐related phlebitis: A systematic review

Abstract

Aims and objectives To evaluate the effectiveness of topical interventions in the prevention or treatment of intravenous therapy‐related phlebitis. Background Phlebitis is a severe inflammatory reaction that can be caused by intravenous therapy with hyperosmolar drugs. Although a variety of interventions are performed in several different countries, the most efficient method is yet to be established. Design A systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted. Methods Following the PRISMA checklist, we conducted a literature search using seven different databases using an individual strategy adapted for each. Studies in which any topical intervention was applied to prevent or treat intravenous therapy‐related phlebitis which were published between 1998 and 2019 were analysed. Results Data were collected of 13 RCTs, which in total collected data from 2,015 patients during hospital treatments with different types of intravenous therapies, such as fluid replacement, antibiotics, chemotherapy and antiarrhythmic drugs. The effectiveness of different topical interventions such as the application of nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs, Sesame indicum oil, heparin sodium formulations, Chamomilla recutita tea and ointment, and Rosmarinus officinalis ointment were identified. Relevance to Clinical Practice Although the studies suggest a potential to use phytotherapy agents as topical interventions, pharmaceutical preparations, main substrate, and pharmaceutical or phytotherapeutic origins are very different between studies. There are insufficient data to build a solid conclusion that lead us to recommend a specific topical intervention in the prevention or treatment of intravenous therapy‐related phlebitis.

Practical view of the topical treatment of peripheral venous catheter‐related phlebitis: A scoping review

“…The tested products were calendula (Jourabloo et al, 2017), quercetin (Ghorbani et al, 2016), phellodendron (Wan, 2018), ichthammol glycerine (Basu et al, 2017;Thomas et al, 2016), sesame (Bigdeli Shamloo et al, 2019;Damanik, 2017) and chamomile (Lila, 2017). The results reported on the benefits of phytotherapeutic products concur with those of other studies and systematic reviews (Dos Reis et al, 2009;Gao et al, 2016;Goulart et al, 2020;Martín Gil et al, 2017). The efficacy of these products is due to their anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-oedematous, anti-pyretic and anti-nociceptive properties (Bigdeli Shamloo et al, 2019).…”

“…Systemic and topical treatments are available, with the latter the most commonly used to control symptoms and alleviate patient discomfort (Di Nisio et al, 2015; Lian et al, 2017). However, there is a lack of consensus on topical interventions, with only two systematic reviews conducted on this topic (Goulart et al, 2020; Martín Gil et al, 2017). The study by Martín Gil et al (2017) reported on the pharmacological (heparinoids, diclofenac, nitroglycerine) and phytotherapeutic products (chamomile, notoginseny, aloe vera) used in the treatment of phlebitis.…”

“…Systemic and topical treatments are available, with the latter the most commonly used to control symptoms and alleviate patient discomfort (Di Nisio et al, 2015;Lian et al, 2017). However, there is a lack of consensus on topical interventions, with only two systematic reviews conducted on this topic (Goulart et al, 2020;Martín Gil et al, 2017).…”

Analysis of Nursing Team Knowledge About Phlebitis and Its Related Factors

“…Therefore, there is a divergence in the literature and scarcity on the subject so commonly used in clinical practice by nursing. Although effective, the compresses are insufficient to treat phlebitis alone, requiring their association with herbal medicines or other therapeutic modalities, to reduce the risk of progression to thromboembolism (BARBOSA et al, 2016;WELYCZKO, 2020;GOULART et al, 2020;ZHENG et al, 2014).…”

“…Phlebitis is a local complication of peripheral intravenous (IV) therapy, a technical-scientific process performed by the nursing team, which consists of the insertion of a peripheral venous catheter (PIVIC). Its classification is mostly ordered by visual scales, with Visual Infusion Phlebitis (VIP) being the most commonly used (MILUTINOVIC et al, 2015;GOULART et al, 2020).…”