Monitoring in critical care

Question 1

What is mean arterial pressure?

Answer 1

• The average pressure in a patient’s arteries throughout one cardiac cycle.
• Shows how well a body is perfusing organs
• MAP = diastolic BP + systolic BP - DBP / 3 (normally around 90-100mmHg)

Question 2

What is central venous pressure?

Answer 2

• Estimates amount of blood returning to heart

- Usually ranges 0-5mmHg

Question 3

What is a Swans-Ganz?

Answer 3

Pulmonary artery catheter

Question 4

What does a pulmonary artery catheter measure?

Answer 4

• Left ventricular filling
• Left atrial pressure
• Mitral valve function

(PCWP = pulmonary catheter wedge pressure; normal 8-12mmHg)

Question 5

What does an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) do?

Answer 5

Helps the heart pump more blood

Question 6

What does a ventricular assist device (VAD) do?

Answer 6

Helps the left ventricle pump blood around body

Question 7

What does extracorporeal membrane oxygenation do?

Answer 7

Blood is pumped out of the body to a machine that removes CO2 and sends O2-filled blood back to the body

Question 8

What is the normal intracranial pressure range?

Answer 8

Approx 5-15mmHg

Question 9

What is one method of measuring intracranial pressure?

Answer 9

Subarachnoid bolt

Question 10

What is dialysis?

Answer 10

• Used for acute and chronic renal failure

- Removes solutes and water via a semipermeable membrane