Port Replacement

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Emily65Roses

New member
Okay I had a clinic appointment on Tuesday. I asked the doctor a whole bunch of things and he also had to schedule testing, med refills, etc, so this question of mine kind of got lost in the mix. I figure I'll ask it here and see if anyone has any ideas.

So I got my port in when I was 18. I know ports have a kind of life-span. Only so many sticks (a few thousand or something, I forget). But if the port never gets infected, how do they know exactly when to replace it?? Does it get so old that meds don't flow as easily anymore, or what? Anyone know? Thanks.
 
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anonymous

New member
Dear Emily,

My daughter is 22 and rec'd her first Port at the age of 8. She has had about 5 since. Just had one removed yesterday due to MRSA Infection. It is the first time she ever had one removed due to infection. Others started leaking. One was plugged and a nurse forced so hard that she broke the tube connected to the port.
Take care of it and make sure anyone accessing or flushing the port does so as to protacol. We were also told that they last longer when blood is not drawn back on them....

Good luck to you!
Missy's Mom
 
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anonymous

New member
HI,
I have only had one port, which had to be taken out last year because it had clotted off. I had it for 6 1/2 years. One of the nurses in the hospital wasn't flushing it with heparin after abx infusion. Needless to say, she isn't working there any more! When I had it put in I was told not to have blood drawn off it and it will last much longer. I know mine would have gone on longer, if it hadn't been for that awful nurse. Also, if it is infected it needs to come out, as the previous poster mentioned. Hope this helps!
Kim 39 w/cf
 
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Emily65Roses

New member
Yeah that does help, you guys, thanks. I'm just curious that if nothing goes wrong with the port... and it just needs to be replaced because it's been long enough, because it's old, what are the signs of that? Does it stop working, do the needles not go in as easily anymore? Etc. If there are no clots, no infections, no misplacement, how do you know when they need to be replaced?
 
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jenhum

New member
Hey Emily,
I had mine for almost 8 years before it clotted off and just couldn't be accessed. And it wasn't from lack of heparin or not getting it flushed every month, it just died <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">. I think that as long as it is functioning, in it stays! The people who did my replacement surgery couldn't believe I'd had mine in so long, b/c not many people put them in permanently like we do. A lot of cancer patients use them, but they take them out when they are done with their therapy. I know I've heard of a few other CFers whose lasted longer than mine. But I think they all give out eventually. Until then, keep on enjoying it! (b/c they are just soooo fun <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif" border="0">)

Just a couple of side notes....I had mine clot up three times inthe year before they replaced it. They do have this clotbuster stuff that they can use if they are able to inject anything at all. Also, try to get your meds/flush in, but if it is closed off, DO NOT FORCE IT, and don't let the nurse do it either. Very bad things can happen. OK, I think that's it <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">.
 
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anonymous

New member
I got my port when i was 13 and now i am 20. It still works great! I moved from spokane Wa to vancouver WA and then from there i moved here to hawaii so my port has seen many different places! Some people say you dont have to use heperin and some wont do without! When i first got it they told me to always use heperin, so i use it all the time now! It has never had any problems. I keep a good eye out on the nurses when they come in and mess with it. It is my baby and i want to keep it for a long time. I think that if you take care of it and flush it once a month then you should be able to keep it a long time.
 
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jenhum

New member
I've heard that you always always use heparin UNLESS you get one of the new ones and they specifically tell that you don't have to. I have a new one and they gave me a card to carry to show the nurses that don't believe me when I say I don't have to use it. To be honest though, I have used heparin every time but once anyways...too many years of freaking out over having to have the heparin!!!
 
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jenhum

New member
Emily- I have no idea how it works so that you don't need the heparin....I justknow they gave me a little card after my surhery expaining that it only needed to be flushed with saline, but that heparin won't hurt it.
 
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jamey

New member
i had my port removed a couple months ago. i went in for a tune up and when they accessed it they couldnt at all flush it or get a blood return. they said it just shot craps and took it out. but i had it for 9 years. and i will say it didnt last that long because i took good care of it, because i didnt. the only time mine was ever accessed or flushed was when i was doing antibiotics. but as far as flushing monthly, i never did. i even went over 2 straight years after i first got it and never had it flushed until i went in for antibiotics. im not saying its good not to flush it like your supposed to, im just telling my experience, maybe i was just lucky with it.
 
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anonymous

New member
hiya

i had my port fitted when i was 8 - i'm now 20 and still have the same one. lately tho my needle has become dislodged a few times whilst on iv's; apparently this may mean that my port is packing up - it may have perished which means the needle won't hold as well. but as u can see no port has a definite life span, take good care of it and it can last for a long time. i'm quite paranoid about having a new one fitted as i had the last one when i was so young but i'm hoping it will be ok for a little while yet!

siobhan x
 
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blindhearted

New member
Dear Emily,

I am getting my port replaced this friday (3/11). It stopped Dec 04 and I was just able to get an appointment with the surgeon this past Thurs. As long as it didn't hurt, I didn't have a fever or need it, there wasn't a huge rush to get it changed (according to my doctor).

My port is located in my lower left chest, and they said they should be able to put it back there with no problem. It's the only one I have had. It's 7 years old, which they said it was rare, specially for that location. I flushed it every month, no exceptions. I never drew blood from it since I had a really long line which made clots a very high risk. I had no infection, no clots, and no kinks (to my knowledge). I was getting it flushed and it just stopped during mid-flush, even though I got a good blood return at the start. I felt no pain when it stopped. After it stopped, nothing could go in and nothing would come out. Not even the medicine.

But I knew for about a year or so that I was going to go at any moment because:

1. Nurses told me when they accessed it they didn't get the "pop" they usually feel when the needle went in. It was harder to tell if it was actually in or not.

2. When I would get IV treatment the machine would say occlusion more and more often. I had to change to a larger needled (from a 22 to 20, then 19 by the end). That fix the problem for a while. But it got to the point that I had to get the needle changed more fequently. (3-4 times in two weeks, instead of once a week like normal).

3. I also noticed that over time more and more resistance built up when pushing the flush/medicine through. The time before it stopped working, the flush moved so slow you could hardly tell it was even going in at all.

I hope that helps you.

Danyell
22 yr old w/CF from NC
college grad, engaged
 
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