The evidence of effectiveness and safety of peripheral intravenous catheter dressings and securement devices: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol

What is it about?

Background: Peripheral intravenous catheters are widely used worldwide. Intravenous catheterisation is one of the most common medical procedures in hospitals. Despite their widespread use, peripheral intravenous catheters exhibit concerning failure rates. Peripheral intravenous catheter dressing and securement devices can be protected against factors that cause the development of peripheral intravenous catheter failures. Aim: The primary objective is to review the evidence of effectiveness and safety of peripheral intravenous catheter dressings and securement devices in terms of post-insertion peripheral intravenous catheter failures; dislodgement, occlusion, extravasation, infiltration, phlebitis, and catheter-related bloodstream infection in hospitalised adult and paediatric patients. The secondary objective is peripheral intravenous catheter dwell time. Inclusion criteria: This review included randomised controlled trials or cluster randomised trials. Cross-over trials are considered for inclusion where data from the initial treatment period was available. Methods: The study performed methodical searches in the following electronic databases: CENTRAL, CINAHL, Ovid EMBASE, and Ovid MEDLINE from 1959 to 2024. The review will use standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane. Methodological quality will be appraised using the revised version of the Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomised trials (RoB2). A fixed effect models meta-analysis will be conducted where appropriate. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) tool will be used to determine confidence levels of findings from the studies.

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