Central Venous Access Devices

Key points about central venous access devices

• a central venous access device (CVAD) is sometimes called a 'central line'
• it's a device that allows health professionals to give medicines, fluids and blood products into a large central vein leading directly into your child's heart
• health professionals can also use a CVAD to take blood samples

What is a central venous access device?

A central venous access (CVAD) is a device that provides entry from outside the body to a large central vein leading directly into the heart. A CVAD is sometimes called a 'central line'.

Health professionals use a CVAD to:

• give chemotherapy and other medicines
• give nutritional fluids
• give intravenous (IV) fluids
• give blood products
• take blood samples for testing

A CVAD remains in place until treatment stops, unless it's a temporary CVAD. Health professionals might remove the CVAD early if:

• there are complications with the device
• if treatment requires you to have a different type of CVAD

Types of central venous access devices

There are several types of CVADs.

The type of device your child has will depend on their age and type of treatment. Your child's healthcare team will talk to you about which one will suit your child best.

Ask your child's healthcare team for details about the device they select for your child.

Types of CVADs include:

• tunnelled cuffed CVAD
• tunnelled uncuffed CVAD
• peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC)
• port (portacath)

Tunnelled cuffed CVAD

A tunnelled cuffed central venous access device (CVAD) is a soft, flexible tube. It usually goes into a vein in the neck. It's gently guided through the vein until it sits in a large vein close to the right side of the heart. Part of the tube sits under the skin and part comes out through the chest. 

Tunnelled Cuffed Central Venous Access Devices

Peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC)

A peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) is is a soft, flexible tube. It usually goes into a vein in your child’s arm. It's gently guided through the vein until it sits in a large vein close to the right side of the heart. Part of the tube stays outside the body on the arm. It allows easy access to the blood stream to give medicines and fluids and to take blood samples during treatment.

Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC)

Port (portacath)

A port is a device that sits completely under the skin. It's sometimes called a portacath. It has 2 parts - a small round chamber under the skin and a thin tube. The tube is gently guided from the chamber to a vein near the neck, then to a large vein close to the right side of the heart. There is no tubing outside the body. 

Port (Portacath)

Inserting and removing a CVAD 

A health professional will put in most CVADs under a general anaesthetic in the operating theatre. Your child will be asleep and will feel nothing while the procedure is taking place.

Your child may have a PICC under general anaesthetic in an operating theatre or on the ward using local anaesthetic.

There may be some pain during the first 1 or 2 days after insertion. Your child's healthcare team may prescribe pain-relieving medicine to make sure your child is comfortable.