[Infections of implantable ports in haematology patients]. / Infections des chambres à cathéter implantables chez les patients atteints d'une hémopathie.

From 2010 to 2015, a study analysed the infections of implantable ports in haematology patients. Communication, collaboration and diligence were some of the main issues raised.

[Pinch-off syndrom or costo clavicular forceps syndrom]. / Pinch-off syndrome ou syndrome de la Pince Costo-Claviculaire.

Implantable catheter systems are the most common procedure used for patients requiring chemotherapy or long-term drug administration. Several procedures are used for the installation of these systems. Patients with long-term subclavian venous catheters described a progressive rupture of the catheter which is a rare complication. This rupture is most often due to costoclavicular forceps or Pinch-off syndrome (POS). We report 07 cases of Pinch-off syndrome to evaluate our diagnostic and therapeutic approach.

[Implantable venous access ports, nursing practices]. / Chambres implantables d'abord veineux, quelles pratiques infirmières ?

Following the publication of national recommendations regarding the handling of implantable venous access ports, an observation audit was carried out in a hospital in 2013. This enabled an assessment of the existing system to be performed, current practices to be compared with the hospital's protocol and adapted corrective measures to be put in place. A further audit carried out in 2015 was particularly encouraging.

[Catheter fracture and pulmonary embolization of the distal fragment: a rare complication of the totally implantable venous access port]. / Rupture du cathéter et migration du fragment distal vers les artères pulmonaires : une complication rare des chambres à cathéter implantables.

INTRODUCTION: Totally implantable venous access port plays a crucial role in the treatment of patients in oncology. However, its use can result sporadically in catheter fracture with catheter tip embolization into pulmonary arteries. CASE REPORTS: We report this unusual but potentially serious complication in four patients. In these patients, the port had been inserted percutaneously into the subclavian vein using the infra-clavicular approach. This side effect occurred late in three patients. In all patients, the catheter fracture was asymptomatic or pauci-symptomatic and was caused by the pinch-off syndrome. The retrieval of the embolized fragments was successfully performed by transcatheter procedure in the cardiac catheterisation laboratory. CONCLUSION: We reviewed the literature and the newest guidelines and recommendations to detail the clinico-radiological features, the possible causes of this complication and discussed means to recognize, manage and prevent it.

[Multicenter validation study of a questionnaire assessing patient satisfaction with and acceptance of totally-implanted central venous access devices]. / Validation multicentrique d'un questionnaire évaluant l'acceptation et la satisfaction des patients porteurs de chambre à cathéter implantable : le questionnaire QASICC.

OBJECTIVE: Most cancer patients require a totally-implanted central venous access device (TIVAD) for their treatment. This was a prospective, multicenter, open study to: (i) develop and validate a French-language questionnaire dubbed QASICC (Questionnaire for Acceptance of and Satisfaction with Implanted Central Venous Catheter) assessing patient's satisfaction with and acceptance of their TIVAD; (ii) develop a mean score of patient's acceptance and satisfaction; (iii) look for correlation between QASICC score and TIVAD patient/tumor pathology/device characteristics. METHODS: From 2011 November to 2012 December, the first version of the QASICC questionnaire that included 27 questions assessing seven dimensions was re-tested among 998 cancer patients in eleven French cancer hospitals (eight cancer research institutes and three university/general hospitals). The goal was: (i) to reduce the questionnaire item and dimension number (pertinency, saturation effect, item correlation); (ii) to assess its psychometric properties, demonstrate its validity and independency compared to (EORTC) QLQC30; (iii) to correlate clinical and pathological patient's/tumor's/TIVAD's parameters with the QASICC questionnaire score (the higher the overall score, the greater the acceptance and satisfaction). The questionnaire was administered to the patient 30 days (±15 days) after TIVAD's implantation. RESULTS: Among 998 questionnaires given to cancer patients, 658 were analyzed and 464 were fully assessed as there was no missing data. Time to fill-in the questionnaire was five minutes in 90% patients. Final QASICC tool included twenty-two questions assessing four homogeneous dimensions (65%