Dressing changes on a port are easier than a PICC line. The dressing on a port is nothing but a Huber needle, possibly a piece of guaze to stabilize the needle and a tegraderm. Dressing change involves pulling the tegraderm off, cleaning the site, changing the guaze and sticking a new tegraderm on. Much easier than dressing change of a PICC where the actual line is involved, where things are attached to that line and where the child can feel you jostling that line as you change the dressing.
With a port, the only thing moving around is the Huber needle and that only goes directly into the hub, which is just under the skin. No matter what you do with the dressing change, you aren't jostling the line inside their body, because its secure on the inside and shouldn't be moving (a rare complication is that the hub can flip over but I've only known one kid have that happen and his doctors went back in and put a stitch into the line to hold it in place).
Really and truly, port-a-cath access is SOOOO much better than PICC lines. Its easy. Its virtually painfree. And, when its not accessed, you can just live life as normal without a thought in the world to its precense there.
The vast majority of boys with severe Hemophilia get ports, at least in childhood, to manage the constant needle sticks. They can get all of their labs pulled from the port (though we don't allow that and do labwork via veinous access since again we don't allow anyone but mom and dad to access the port). They can have all needles put through the port. Its just a superficial needle stick versus having to dig around in tissue to find a vein. And, its got none of the maintenance and social stigma issues which come with PICC lines.
Its really not just sick people who have ports. Its those who have to face lots of needles. Lots of sickle cell patients also have ports for pain management access. And, I've never known a sickle cell patient who wasn't grateful for their port, same as the Hemophiliacs.
