How to avoid Complications of venipuncture

Arterial puncture is an invasive procedure that with serious complications and requires priority to patient safety. Any violation of the correct safety technique may cause harm to the patient, which may result in the loss of form and function of the distal body of the arterial puncture site. Any attempt to repeat a puncture at the same site increases the risk of complications.

1. The most common complications are bleeding at the puncture site or hematoma formation. This is more common in humeral and femoral punctures than radial punctures. Using the smallest acceptable needle size can help reduce the risk of bleeding or hematoma formation. Continuous pressure on the puncture site best reduces the development of the hematoma.

2. thrombosis is more common in the radial artery than in the brachial or femoral artery. Artery puncture is more likely if performed on vessels with the occlusive disease. Thrombosis may cause ischemia and gangrene distal to the puncture. Thrombosis may also cause a distal embolization of thrombosis or plaque, thereby causing arterial occlusion. If an arterial embolism occurs and is not rapidly identified and treated, the possibility of a loss of hand or finger function is considerable. The possibility of thrombosis can be reduced by changing the site of the repeated puncture and using the needle as fine as possible. Check the lateral circulation is imperative (Allen test) before radial puncture.

3. may develop transient arterial spasms during or after an arterial puncture. If this occurs, continue monitoring and evaluating the collateral cycles. If the circulation remains impaired, avascular consultation should be performed. If the collateral circulation is impaired, immediate surgical intervention is required.

4. Nerve injury may be due to accidental insertion of a needle directly into the nerve tract or to excessive nerve compression secondary to a large hematoma in an adjacent area. The risk is increased if the patient has coagulopathy, which delays clotting.

5. Infection is rare if the appropriate techniques are followed. Proper sterile technique and the avoidance of damaged or damaged skin can minimize this risk when selecting an arterial puncture site.

Avoid unintentional arterial puncture

Although it is rare to puncture the arteries for vein intubation, it does occur. The brachial artery is located near the essential vein and is important as it is located in the area where intravenous puncture can be selected. Because the arteries are deeper than the veins, these events are most likely to occur when digging the veins blindly or trying to find deeper veins due to venous pathway difficulties.

"The risk of complications caused by inadvertent arterial puncture is that leaks may not be undetected and cause blood to build up in an area, thereby causing oppressive damage to nearby nerves. This type of injury may permanently damage the nerve and lead to litigation.”

Senssensory pulse is important when touching the selected vein as this suggests that the selected area may be the artery. Furthermore, the use of the Aimvein vein finder may help to find more suitable venipuncture locations, thereby avoiding veins close to the artery.