Paitents can be a challenge when trying to obtain peripheral IV access. The vein may be collapsed from dehydration or scarred because of IV drug use or repeated cannulation. Before thinking about an ultrasound-guided deep vein IV or a central line, take a look at the external jugular (EJ) vein.
- There is no tourniquet for the neck.
- To distend the vein, you often need to put the patient in Trendelenburg, which may be uncomfortable or intolerable for some
Use a stethoscope as an EJ tourniquet
Want to see ultrasound evidence?
The EJ area before and after application of an EJ stethoscope-tourniquet on myself was 0.11 cm2 and 0.46 cm2, respectively. This represents a 4-fold increase in area after 1 minute.
Want more evidence? We’re in the process of studying the EJ tourniquet’s effectiveness. The results will be in an abstract near you soon!
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