Ethanol Lock Therapy for Treatment and Secondary Prophylaxis of Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infection

Use of long-term central venous access devices (including tunneled lines and ports) can be associated with development of bloodstream infection caused by build-up of bacteria or fungus on the inside of the device, called central line associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI). This infection generally requires hospital admission and antibiotic therapy. This treatment usually helps eradicate the infection but sometimes it is not possible to clear or it comes back after treatment. Also, once someone has had one line infection the chance of getting another one is higher. This study will test whether treatment and secondary prophylaxis of CLABSI with ethanol lock therapy (ELT) can significantly reduce the risk of treatment failure (comprising failure to clear initial infection, relapse or reinfection) in children and adolescents treated for cancer or hematologic disorders or undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). ELT involves injecting a solution of ethanol and water into the line or port, allowing it to dwell for 2 hours, and then withdrawing the solution.