SDOP: A smart handheld device for over puncture prevention during pediatric peripheral intravenous catheterization

Peripheral IntraVenous Catheterization (PIVC) is a very common procedure for medicinal infusion and blood sampling. Unfortunately, this operation suffers from very low success rates. Especially for young children, because their veins are very small and fragile, PIVC procedure is generally difficult and critical. One of the most difficult tasks during PIVC is to detect venipuncture and immediately stop the insertion. Because of the vague haptic sensing of venipuncture and difficulty in immediately stopping the insertion after venipuncture, over-puncture is a common reason for failure in pediatric PIVC. In this study, we propose a design of a handheld device to improve the catheter insertion procedure. This device integrates a venipuncture detection sensor based on electrical impedance measurement at the needle tip and a latch based disengage mechanism to provide a security guarantee by stopping the catheter advancement immediately after venipuncture. This key feature was assessed through user trials based on a realistic pediatric PIVC trainer mannequin. Results demonstrated the great advantage of SDOP, which was able to help even naïve users achieve success rates considerably higher than typical values reported for expert practitioners.