Submitted by Kevertsz, PICC Coordinator, Harris County Hospital Distric on Fri Nov 7 12:56:17 2008
More frequent than ever, I have patients telling me they can taste the saline when I flush their PICC lines. Some have gone so far as to say they "smell" the saline flush. I'd like to know the physiology that causes such a reaction. Does anyone know? Does anyone else get similiar comments from their patinets?
Submitted by blacba, rn ivt, upmc horizon on November 13, 2008 - 05:28.
When I was a pt back in 2005, I had this happen to me via a peripheral iv. I never believed my pts until it happened to me.
Submitted by rivka livni, PICC RN, San Francisco General Hospital on November 10, 2008 - 04:02.
Yes, I hear it from patients, I would say about 20-30%. I am sure there are other nurses who will agree.
Submitted by lynncrni, President, Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc. on November 9, 2008 - 23:43.
This is call dysguesia and occurs with all brands of saline flush. It can be related to the other medications that the patient is taking or directly to the disease itself. Several years ago, I wrote a white paper on this and did not find any real physiological explanation for it happening. Many drugs cause the same or similar problems.
Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RN, BC, CRNI
www.hadawayassociates.com
I have found this with some patients but can not be an indicator of placement. You can be up the IJ with a PICC and they can still say they taste it. In my practice as a floor nurse I would here this frequently with central lines.
Jamie Hamm
RN, BSN