3M Health Care announced today the launch of its newest infection prevention product, 3M™ Tegaderm™ CHG (chlorhexidine gluconate) IV Securement Dressing, a transparent, antimicrobial dressing used to cover and protect catheter sites and to secure devices to skin. For the first time, clinicians will have a dressing that provides continual antimicrobial activity while maintaining complete site visibility.
Tegaderm™ CHG consists of a transparent adhesive dressing and an integrated gel pad containing the highly effective antiseptic agent, chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG). 3M testing in healthy volunteers has shown that Tegaderm™ CHG reduces the amount of skin flora under the dressing and prevents re-growth.1 3M in vitro testing shows CHG has broad spectrum activity against, and is a barrier to, a wide variety of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria and yeast, including the majority of pathogens that are of most concern to epidemiologists and infection-control practitioners.
In the last three decades, the number of bloodstream infections has nearly tripled in the United States. In fact, the CDC estimates 80,000 such infections occur in U.S. ICUs alone each year and that estimate increases to 250,000 if entire hospitals are assessed.
“Health care facilities are facing increasing pressure to minimize the total cost of infection and are highly committed to finding solutions. Tegaderm™ CHG dressing adds to a trusted line of 3M infection prevention products that help protect the IV site,” said Kelley Boyer, Vascular Access Marketing Manager, 3M Health Care. 3M™ Tegaderm™ CHG Dressing has not been studied in a randomized clinical study as to its effectiveness in preventing catheter-related blood stream infections (CR-BSI) or other percutaneous device-related infections.
The new dressing combines the powerful antimicrobial protection of CHG with the simplicity of Tegaderm™ film dressings, making it easy to use. Since the Tegaderm™ dressing and its integrated CHG gel pad are transparent; it allows continuous catheter site visualization, letting health care professionals detect any signs of inflammation or infection around the intravascular device. The dressing is also breathable. It is an effective barrier to outside contaminants and absorbs fluids.
Significant Health and Economic Impact
Intravascular catheters have become necessary components of in-patient hospital care, with their use increasingly on the rise. Hospitals and clinics purchase more than 150 million intravascular catheters every year for myriad uses including administration of IV fluids, nutrition and medications. While indispensable to providing care, catheters increase a patient’s risk for infections, including catheter-related blood stream infections (CR-BSIs), which can be life threatening. Because blood stream infections can lead to devastating medical consequences for patients – they are a major, public health concern. To both improve patient outcomes and to reduce the associated health care costs, the CDC recommends implementing multidisciplinary strategies to help reduce the incidence of these infections.
Recently, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved new regulations affecting reimbursement for certain conditions that are considered preventable. For discharges occurring on or after October 2008, hospitals will not receive additional reimbursement from Medicare for CR-BSIs and certain other hospital-acquired conditions that were not present on admission.
About Tegaderm™ Dressings
Health care professionals have relied on the Tegaderm™ family of dressings for IV sites for the last 25 years. Tegaderm™ dressings have incorporated 3M’s patented product designs, adhesive, polymer and transparent film technologies, providing health care professionals with products that are simple, clinically effective, dependable and trusted.
About 3M Health Care
Since inventing Ioban™ antimicrobial incise surgical drapes more than 30 years ago, 3M has been a worldwide leader in developing health care products and services that address infection control. 3M Health Care, one of 3M’s six major business segments, is dedicated to improving the practice, delivery and outcome of patient care and is a leading provider of solutions for medical, oral care, drug delivery and health information markets.
3M, Tegaderm and Ioban are trademarks of 3M.
1 In vivotesting, in vitrotesting,data on file, 3M Data on file
3MStephanie Sanderson, 651-733-8588sjsanderson@mmm.comorWeissComm PartnersCassandra Choe, 212-301-7225cchoe@wcpglobal.com
