ECG Versus Ultrasound-guided Positioning of the Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Tip

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT02467049

Enrollment

Registered

2015-06-09

Start date

2015-06-30

Completion date

2017-11-30

Last updated

2019-04-17

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Cancer, Infection, Malnutrition

Keywords

ECG, Ultrasound, Peripherally Inserted Central Catheters, PICC

Brief summary

In the prevention of thrombosis related to catheter placement it is important to have a right position of the catheter tip. Therefor we want to assess which technique is the most successful in the placing of a PICC.

Detailed description

This is a randomised prospective single blinded study. All adult patients with an indication for PICC placement can be included. Patients will be randomised into two groups, one with ECG-guided placement followed by ultrasound control and the other with only ultrasound guided placement. After placement, in both groups, control radiography of the chest will be done which will be interpreted by an independent radiologist. For the ECG-guided group the ultrasound control of the tip position will be done by an independent, blind operator, after placement. For the only ultrasound guided placement group, the ultrasound will be done by a second operator during placement.

Interventions

DEVICEECG-guided insertion of PICC

Comparison of placement of a PICC (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) by ECG-guidance vs. ULTRASOUND-guidance

DEVICEULTRASOUND-guided insertion of PICC

Comparison of placement of a PICC (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) by ECG-guidance vs. ULTRASOUND-guidance

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* All adults with indication for PICC

Exclusion criteria

* Age \<18y * Pregnant women

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Number of participants with correct placement in the superior caval vein during PICC insertion, after either ECG or ultrasound guided insertion	Whitin 5 minutes after catheter-placement	The aim of the study is a comparison between two techniques to control correct positioning of the PICC

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Duration of PICC-placement by ECG-guidance versus ultrasound-guidance	within 5 minutes	—
frequency of necessity of replacement after chest-x-ray control	1 day	PICC tip should be located in the superior caval vein, close to the entrance of the right atrium. Other locations lead to repositioning.

Countries

Belgium

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026