Healthcare Technology Featured Article

November 04, 2014

New Tech Means No More Hunting for Veins


Whether it is to deliver medication or draw blood, nurses have to find veins from many different types of individuals. While some people have veins protruding throughout their arm, others don’t have anything visible nurses can see to guide them. Neonatal and oncology patients, people that are overweight and children present challenges only the most experienced phlebotomist can handle. However, by using near-infrared light technology nurses can now find the optimal venipuncture site even for the most difficult cases. Although the technology has been around for more than four years, it is finally seeing increased adoption after many real-life user cases by healthcare professionals around the world proved its viability.

VeinViewer Flex by Christie Medical is a portable vascular access imaging device that uses HD imaging and Df² (digital full field) technology to deliver a clear image so hard to see veins can be identified easily to avoid complications.

The device works by projecting near-infrared light on the desired location, which is then absorbed by the blood and reflected by surrounding tissue. The VeinViewer captures, processes and digitally projects the veins on the surface of the skin with an accurate real-time image of the patient’s blood pattern.

The company uses a patented technology called AVIN (Active Vascular Imaging Navigation), which allows practitioners to see blood patterns up to15mm (0.59 inches) deep and clinically relevant veins up to 10mm (0.39 inches). With this type of visibility clinicians are able to visualize venipuncture sites Pre-, During- and Post-access (PDP) to avoid accidental punctures and the complications they may cause.

This portable unit can be used across different environments including emergency medical services (EMS), home healthcare, surgery units and blood/plasma centers. It is especially useful for critically ill patients that have been subjected to repeated injections for medication and tests, such as chemotherapy patients and infants in neonatal units.

“Pediatrics can be one of the most difficult patient populations for venipuncture procedures.  Consider the challenges associated with pediatric vascular access: small veins, limited access points due to size and the presence of "baby fat" and managing the anxiety of the children and their families. These challenges are the reason that pediatrics is typically one of the first areas within a facility to adopt VeinViewer vein illumination,” Chritstie Medical.

VeinViewer has successfully been used in real-life applications globally in: hospitals, pediatrics, emergency, oncology, Pre-Op, radiology, aesthetics, outpatient centers and non-hospitals.

See this exciting technology in action here.


Edited by Maurice Nagle
Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]




SHARE THIS ARTICLE



FREE eNewsletter

Click here to receive your targeted Healthcare Technology Community eNewsletter.
[Subscribe Now]