Contents
Although skin punctures may be more painful than a properly performed venipuncture, stabilizing the puncture site after the piercing the skin is less critical to the success of the procedure.Skin Puncture or Venipuncture? Pros & Cons, Part 2.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| minimizes iatrogenic anemia | more painful to the patient |
| patient injury less likely | yields smaller volumes of blood |
When performing a manual capillary puncture what step comes first in the procedure?
3. Order of draw. With skin punctures, the haematology specimen is collected first, followed by the chemistry and blood bank specimens. This order of drawing is essential to minimize the effects of platelet clumping.
Which of the following is a common complication when using a needle that is too small?
If the needle is too large for the vein for which it is intended, it will tear the vein and cause bleeding (haematoma)
if the needle is too small, it will damage the blood cells during sampling, and laboratory tests that require whole blood cells, or haemoglobin and free plasma, will be invalid.
When the body is cold the capillaries what?
Blood vessels, which lead to the skin capillaries, become narrower – they constrict – which allows less blood to flow through the skin and conserve the core body temperature. This is called vasoconstriction .
What are the disadvantages of venipuncture?
Complications that can arise from venepuncture include haematoma formation, nerve damage, pain, haemaconcentration, extravasation, iatrogenic anaemia, arterial puncture, petechiae, allergies, fear and phobia, infection, syncope and fainting, excessive bleeding, edema and thrombus.
What are the disadvantages of skin puncture?
Risks
- Excessive bleeding.
- Fainting or feeling lightheaded.
- Infection (a slight risk any time the skin is broken)
- Scarring (occurs when there have been multiple punctures in the same area)
- Calcified nodules (sometimes occurs in infants, but usually disappear by 30 months of age)
What tests Cannot be performed on capillary blood?
Capillary punctures are not suitable for blood culture testing and most coagulation tests.
What site should be avoided when performing a venipuncture?
Do not use the tip of the finger or the center of the finger. Avoid the side of the finger where there is less soft tissue, where vessels and nerves are located, and where the bone is closer to the surface. The 2nd (index) finger tends to have thicker, callused skin.
Which of the following is not a safety precaution to be used during phlebotomy procedures?
Which of the following is NOT a safety precaution to be used during phlebotomy procedures? Never recap or break needles.
What are 3 complications that can occur with a venipuncture procedure?
Complications that can arise from venepuncture include haematoma forma- tion, nerve damage, pain, haemaconcentration, extra- vasation, iatrogenic anaemia, arterial puncture, pete- chiae, allergies, fear and phobia, infection, syncope and fainting, excessive bleeding, edema and thrombus.
Which of the following is the most common complication from the phlebotomy procedure?
Hematoma: The most common complication of phlebotomy procedure.
What is the most common complication of a venipuncture collection?
Results: Minor bruising and hematoma were fairly common, involving 12.3% of venipunctures, with minor bruising being the most common reaction. Serious complications were observed in 3.4% of patients.
How many percent of the blood is made up of water?
Over 90% of blood plasma is water, while less than 10% consists of dissolved substances, mostly proteins. Blood plasma also contains electrolytes, vitamins and nutrients such as glucose and amino acids. Over 99% of the solid particles in blood are cells known as red blood cells (erythrocytes) due to their red color.
Where are veins?
Veins carry deoxygenated blood towards your heart and are often located close to your skin. Veins don’t have a muscular layer like arteries do, so they rely on valves to keep your blood moving. Veins start as tiny blood vessels called venules, which become full-size veins as they come closer to your heart.
Why is my skin cold to the touch?
Cold skin may be from an imbalance or problem with how your body controls temperature (thermoregulation). This can include imbalances in the hypothalamus, the area of your brain that processes temperature. It can also be due to metabolic causes, including lack of body fat.
What are the causes of failure to draw blood in venipuncture?
If you have been to a clinic or lab before and had the phlebotomist stick you more than once for a blood draw, you may have been told that you are a “difficult stick.” This can happen to people for quite a few different reasons, including small or deep veins, rolling veins, dehydration, collapsing veins, constricted …
Do butterfly needles take longer?
Recommended for blood draws: A lower gauge, such as an 18-gauge butterfly needle, is more likely to be used for blood draws. A larger needle collects blood faster than a smaller one and may be the best choice in emergencies or if a patient is squeamish.
What factors may have contributed to the specimen collection difficulties?
What factors may have contributed to the specimen collection difficulties? Improper direction of puncture and the presence of alcohol residue may have contributed to the blood running down the finger instead of forming drops, making it hard to collect the specimen.
Why is it not advisable to puncture the infant’s finger?
Fingerstick on a newborn or young infant
There is very little distance between the skin and the bone. Therefore, the bone could be easily pierced during the puncture, causing injury to the bone, infection, or gangrene.
Why is it best to perform dermal puncture rather than venipuncture on children?
The dermal puncture minimizes the amount of blood taken from the patient. This will be important to consider, especially with infants in an intensive care nursery. However, some laboratory tests require larger amounts of blood for testing
in these cases, capillary collection is not an option.
What is skin puncture method?
Skin Puncture technique is used to obtain blood specimens when venipuncture or other collection methods are not appropriate. Blood specimens obtained by skin puncture are especially important in pediatrics, because small but adequate amounts of blood for laboratory tests can be obtained with this technique.
Why is a capillary sample not acceptable for coagulation testing?
Dehydration and poor circulation would also interfere with capillary blood flow and patients presenting with one of these conditions would not be good candidates for capillary blood collection. Certain tests cannot be performed on capillary blood due to the large volume they require or the possibility of contamination.
What is the greatest challenge in collecting a quality capillary blood sample?
Disadvantages of Capillary Blood Collection
Capillary blood collection can sometimes rupture the blood cells, producing results that are inaccurate. Problems with bleeding and infection can occur with any/either method of collection. Patients may feel faint after any type of blood drawing.
Which test is most affected by tissue fluid contamination?
Coagulation tests are highly susceptible to interference from contamination from tissue fluid and tube additives
therefore these tests are usually collected first when a series of tubes are collected.
What are some sources of error common in venipuncture preparation?
Common errors in blood sample collection include in- correct identification, wrong tube, insufficient sample quantity, clot- ting, hemolysis, and contamination.
What is the most critical error a phlebotomist can make?
Most often these errors can be prevented by the phlebotomist following correct venipuncture procedure for every procedure, every time. Hidden errors include hemoconcentration, incorrect order of draw, and (the most serious of all errors) misidentification of patient or specimens (Table 5).
When it is very difficult to draw blood from a patient it is recommended that you try using a?
The phlebotomist can try using a smaller needle, called a butterfly needle, which is large enough to draw blood but often works well on small veins. 5 It is perfectly acceptable to let staff know you need a smaller needle. Don’t hesitate to ask for what you need!
Why is it important for health care workers to follow the correct order of draw during venipuncture?
Draw blood collection tubes in the correct order, to avoid cross-contamination of additives between tubes.
What should you never do after performing a venipuncture that would increase the risk of workplace injury?
Because needle sticks are a major concern, what should you never do after performing a venipuncture? Never recap after collection
needle sticks can occur.
Can you draw blood without a tourniquet?
Performing venipunctures without tourniquets is not an option. Constriction of the circulation causes veins to distend as they fill up with blood that can no longer circulate. Distended veins are easier to palpate and access.