Abstract
Vascular catheterization is increasingly carried out in laboratory mice, but the long-term patency of catheters implanted in mice is limited owing to their small size. The authors compared mice that were catheterized in their right common carotid artery either with a silicone catheter with a polyurethane tip or with a 100% polyurethane catheter to determine which catheter type was better suited for long-term studies in mice. The catheters were inspected daily and were flushed if blood was visible in the catheters; if no blood was visible, they were flushed every 3 d. Silicone catheters were patent for a shorter period of time than polyurethane catheters, which were patent for a median of 6 d and up to 25 d. The authors identify the principal causes of catheter failure and discuss how they can be prevented.
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We thank Otto Kalliokoski for thoroughly reading and commenting on the manuscript.
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Teilmann, A., Falkenberg, M., Hau, J. et al. Comparison of silicone and polyurethane catheters for the catheterization of small vessels in mice. Lab Anim 43, 397–403 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.570
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.570
