Outcomes of tunneled and nontunneled internal jugular catheters for hemodialysis at Zenith Medical and Kidney centre, Nigeria

Objectives: Tunneled and nontunneled jugular access routes are the most widely used routes for hemodialysis (HD) in developing countries. This study was a retrospective review of the utility, safety, and outcomes of both tunneled and nontunneled curved internal jugular catheter use in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in Zenith Medical and Kidney Centre, Abuja, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective study of 100 ESRD patients on maintenance HD at the center between June 2019 and December 2019. All patients on maintenance dialysis with tunneled and nontunneled curved internal jugular catheter were observed for immediate and short-term complications associated with the catheter. Results: Among the patients, 90 (90.0%) had tunneled dialysis catheters placement and dialyzed with it, while 10 (10%) patients had nontunneled dialysis catheters use. While 90 (90%) of the patients with the dialysis catheters developed no complications, ten (10%) patients had catheter-related complications either during catheter insertion or while it was being used for dialysis. The most common in this study was reactionary hemorrhage which occurred in 5% of the patients evaluated. Ten (10%) of the patients with catheter placement required ultrasonic guidance. No death was recorded during catheter placement. Conclusion: Internal jugular tunneled and Non tunneled dialysis catheters (NTDCs) are safe with good outcomes among our ESRD patients.