Central catheters date back to the 1920’s when physician Forssmann mentioned placing a tube by his heart by puncturing his own arm. In the 1950’s, Aubaniac truly introduced the importance of the central catheter with a procedure he performed by placing the catheter in the subclavian vein. Since Forssmann inserted the tube into his own arm and Aubaniac placed the catheter in the subclavian vein central catheters have been known worldwide for the miracles they can assist physicians in achieving with their patients health.
A central catheter is known most commonly as a central line, central venous catheter or central venous line. Central catheters can be placed in many areas of the body including the neck, groin and chest.
The central catheter when placed in a patient has several uses. For many patients a central catheter assists in providing the pressures of the artery, veins and capillaries to be read by a medical professional.
Medical professionals choose to insert central catheters as a way to allow injections to be done without a high risk of complications. The use of the catheter varies by individual patient; some use the monitor to or sometimes to distribute injections of medicine for a period of time. The central catheter has also been used to draw blood for a variety of tests patients may need.