May 9, 2008 - This week at the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, Baxter Healthcare Corp. displayed its needleless V-Link Luer-activated device (LAD), an IV connector containing VitalShield, a silver-ion antimicrobial coating.
Many hospitalized patients need a steady supply of medications or fluids delivered into their blood stream. Typically, an IV catheter is placed in a patient’s vein to allow direct access to the blood stream. In the process of injecting medications or fluids into a sterile line, surface or other environmental contaminants may be introduced. V-Link with VitalShield, a needleless IV connector used with the catheter or IV tubing, helps to prevent contamination and growth of pathogens on the device at this point of entry to the patient’s blood stream. Reduction in colonization or microbial growth on the device has not been shown to correlate with a reduction in infections.
V-Link is uniquely coated on both inner and outer surfaces with a proprietary silver technology called VitalShield. Silver is a well-known antimicrobial agent, and this specially designed formulation has been shown to be effective against a broad spectrum of micro-organisms. The silver antimicrobial agent helps prevent the contamination and growth of these pathogens within the V-Link device.
For more information: www.baxter.com