Phosphatidylcholine coated chest drains: are they better than conventional drains after open heart surgery?

INTRODUCTION: Inadequate thoracic drainage after open heart surgery has serious deleterious consequences. Thrombus formation within the chest drains is primarily responsible for the occlusion of chest drains. Chest drains coated with derivatives of phosphatidylcholine (PC), commonest phospholipid on cell membranes, potentially have a less thrombogenic surface. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a prospective randomised double blind study, we compared PC-coated drains (Group I, n = 25) with non coated drains (Group II, n = 26) after open heart surgery. Drain performance, post-operative complications and clinical course were compared. RESULTS: PC-coated drains had a significantly shorter period of drainage, 20.4 +/- 1.0 versus 28.9 +/- 3.7 h (P < 0.05). Otherwise, mean volume drained, number clots removed from drain and the ease of drainage of the two types of drains were similar. There were no significant differences in the incidence of post-operative pericardial effusions, dysrhythmias, ambulation time and hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the PC coated drains may be of importance in cases where prolonged drainage is anticipated otherwise they have no significant advantage.