Medical glue is the clue to Australian breakthrough

Dr Simon Bugden’s research was recently published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.

Caboolture Hospital Emergency physician Dr Simon Bugden and his research team have found a new way to make one of the most common medical procedures in the world – placing drips or IV lines – safer, less painful and potentially more cost effective.

The researchers, funded by the EMF, found that using medical skin glue to hold hospital drips in place significantly reduced the need to replace them due to infection, pain, blockage or falling out.

Dr Bugden said the failure rate for IV lines in the first 48 hours was 29-40 per cent  in Australia and as high as 90 per cent internationally.

“The research team at Caboolture Hospital found that by using medical skin glue, we could reduce the failure rate to below 17 per cent,” he said.

“The glue made IV lines harder to unintentionally remove and was also shown to kill the bacteria that most commonly cause infections.

“The other major benefit was patient comfort, with patients in the trial reporting that the glue caused less irritation and they were less worried about the lines falling out.

“Doctors place more than 10 million IV lines in Australia each year – and more than 300 million in the US – so reducing the need to replace IV lines will save staff time and free up valuable healthcare resources.”

The research is currently undergoing a cost-benefit analysis by health economists at Griffith University, with a view to rolling out the new procedure on a wide scale.

Dr Simon Bugden’s research was recently published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.