This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (17)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Benefits vs Difficulties

Kevin Quinn, MD; Edward J. Quebbeman, MD, PhD

Arch Surg. 1981;116(7):872-876.

Abstract
• The process of pulmonary artery pressure monitoring in 50 consecutive patients in the surgical intensive care unit was analyzed to determine the number and types of problems that occurred in relation to the benefit obtained. Twenty-six percent of the patients had a change in their cardiorespiratory therapy and their conditions were improved after the pressure data were obtained. Many technical and interpretative problems that tended to decrease the desirability of using pulmonary artery pressure monitoring were identified. Most problems could be avoided by carefully calibrating the monitor system, clearing the catheter system of air bubbles and blood clots, learning to properly interpret pulmonary artery pressure tracings despite large respiratory variations, and obtaining a hard-copy printout of the pressure tracing with the simultaneous ECG signal. A protocol for avoiding many difficulties was developed.

(Arch Surg 1981;116:872-876)

Author Affiliations
From the Department of Surgery, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and the Milwaukee County Medical Complex.

Footnotes
Accepted for publication Dec 30, 1980.

Reprint requests to Department of Surgery, Room 1005, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226 (Dr Quebbeman).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Prospective Study of Pulmonary Artery Balloon Floatation Catheter Insertions
Gill and Cairns
J Intensive Care Med 1988;3:121-128.
ABSTRACT