The whole thing is implanted under the skin in an outpatient procedure with local anesthesia and IV sedation. These catheters are usually not noticeable under your skin, but may sometimes show as a small lump. In order to use this catheter, the nurse must locate and clean the site, and place a special needle through the skin and into the rubber stopper. This can be done for each dose of medication or left in place with a plastic dressing and weekly changes. The ports are made to withstand 2000 needle entries, but this does not irritate the skin over the port.
Most people develop a callus that quits hurting when the needle is placed through the skin.
As a patient, you can be taught to clean the site and access the port with a needle, but it is difficult to learn and complicated to do. Because of the procedures involved in accessing the port for use, these catheters are usually not recommended for daily or more frequent medications. They are perfect for someone who gets a medication only once a week or for a week every six weeks or some other intermittent schedule. One type of implanted port is actually placed in the arm near the elbow and the catheter line threatened up the vein to the Superior Vena Cava, but they offer no particular advantage over a chest port, tend to have more complications, and are harder for the patient to self-access since two hands are almost required for the procedure. When the port is not accessed, it is hardly visible and requires no care other than a once monthly access for flushing with heparin.