BC-led clinical trial points to safer care for critically ill patients

A BC-led clinical research team is behind a study that could help improve care for critically ill patients in intensive care units worldwide. Researchers from Royal Columbian Hospital and Simon Fraser University have published findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), one of the world's most recognized peer-reviewed medical journals. GNW

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Royal Columbian Hospital and Simon Fraser University researchers report reduction in central-line complications in JAMA-published Canadian ICU study

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NEW WESTMINSTER, British Columbia, May 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A BC-led clinical research team is behind a study that could help improve care for critically ill patients in intensive care units worldwide. Researchers from Royal Columbian Hospital and Simon Fraser University have published findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), one of the world’s most recognized peer-reviewed medical journals.

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The study, known as the CLiCK trial, examined central venous access devices, often called central lines, in adult intensive care unit (ICU) patients and was presented by senior author Dr. Steven Reynolds at the American Thoracic Society International Conference on May 18th.

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At issue are the catheters used to deliver fluids, medications, antibiotics and nutrition to the majority of critical care patients in hospital ICUs. While central-line care is essential for many of these patients, their use may lead to risk for infection and functionality may be impeded by clotting in the catheter lumen. When one of the line channels is not being used, clinicians place a small amount of fluid (called a ‘catheter lock’) inside it to help keep the line open. A multi-centre clinical trial found that adding a 4% tetrasodium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (t-EDTA) locking solution was associated with a significant reduction in a composite measure of these complications.

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The trial included 1,468 adult ICU patients at six Canadian hospitals: Royal Columbian Hospital, Surrey Memorial Hospital, Royal Jubilee Hospital, Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, St. Boniface Hospital and Burnaby Hospital. The trial was a triple-blind, multi-centre, cluster-randomized crossover trial designed to compare usual care with the study solution across busy ICU settings.

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“This study tested a very practical question in ICU care: can we do more to keep central lines working safely for critically ill patients?” said Dr. Steven Reynolds, Critical Care Physician at Royal Columbian Hospital, Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology at Simon Fraser University, and Executive Lead of Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s Advancing Innovation in Medicine Institute (AIM). “Central lines are essential for many ICU patients, but complications can interrupt care and result in additional treatment. Because these lines are used in ICUs around the world, evidence on how to reduce complications can matter beyond one hospital or one health system. The trial found a significantly lower rate in a clinically relevant composite outcome, driven most clearly by fewer catheter occlusions requiring alteplase. It gives clinicians and health systems around the world evidence to consider, while also pointing to questions that need further study.”

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The study’s first author is Marlena Ornowska, whose work on this study was part of her PhD thesis completed at Simon Fraser University’s Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology. She also holds a Research Associate position with AIM. Her doctoral work was central to the trial’s design, coordination and manuscript development.