What is TPN and PICC line?

I've seen this term a lot, especially with complications to WLS, what do these mean and what do they do?

I don't know about use with WLS, but with cancer patients, a PICC line is a central tube kind of like an IV and TPN are nutrition bags that are fed thru the PICC lines. My mom couldn't hold anything down when she was on chemo, so she had TPN bags to preven malnutrition.

TPN stands for Total Parenteral Nutrition. It is used when someone is severly malnourished and is unable to eat or drink. It is administered through an IV line.

PICC is a type of IV line that is placed in the upper arm usually and is used for long term IV therapy.

Their relation to WLS is that if someone who has had WLS develops a leak, sometimes the surgeon will opt to try to have the leak heal closed by itself.  In order to do that, you can't eat or drink, so you have to get all of your nutrition through an IV.  They generally send you home with the IV set up and a nurse comes to the house every so often to care for the line and they show you how to change out the IV bags on your own and such.

I had both. I had a J-tube (feeding tube) but it couldn't be used for awhile so they then put me on TPN ..... Once I was able to use the J-tube, I was taken off the TPN. I had a PICC line while being treated for an infection. I have also had 2 central lines .... Rather complicated story.  I had a leak that caused lots of complications .... Still dealing with it. 

You are all right! And it wasn't fun wuth the leak!.. You know how disappointing it is to see meal trays coming in at the hospital and none for you!  Plus, it didn't work. . :/

Hugs

Donna

I had both when I was hospitalized after my surgery. The PICC line was surgically inserted in my upper arm and a larger than normal iv line was inserted up the inside of my arm, over my shoulder and stopped right above my heart (they ultrasound you while doing this so the line doesn't go into your heart). The line is totally inside of your body and only a 2 to 4 line port hangs out of your arm. I was then fed through it (as in I got all my fluids and food through it, not by eating or drinking).

I was very ill, could hardly eat, was getting almost no protein and was severely dehydrated. The PICC line probably saved my life.