ABSTRACT
William Harvey’s description of the heart and circulation in 1628 provided the anatomical basis for subsequent vascular interventions. By the early twentieth century, intravenous therapy was becoming established, replacing proctoclysis and cutaneoclysis as a means of delivering fluids and drugs to patients. Effective antimicrobials, chemotherapeutic agents, total parenteral nutrition (TPN), and the evolution of a culture of intensive care are among the medical advances that have encouraged the development of innovative strategies for vascular access in children over the last 50 years. This group of procedures is now one of the most common performed by pediatric surgeons.
