7% sodium citrate (with benzyl alcohol) as catheter lock: Dedication or obsession?

The standard heparin lock for dialysis catheters in US dialysis units is 1000 units/ml, though its use has significant limitations and problems. The alternative catheter lock of 4% sodium citrate is used in some patients, but a 7% solution would maintain catheter patency better than the 4% concentration. In spite of the failure of two prior catheter locks to become widely used in the US (highly concentrated citrate and Zuragen™), Ash Access worked with a compounding pharmacy to produce 7% sodium citrate with preservative in single‐patient use frangible vials, at a reasonable cost to users. The product had early acceptance by a number of dialysis units and hospitals, but then follow‐up orders were few. Where the project goes from here is unclear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]