Pulmonary Arterial Pressure Increases during Cardiopulmonary Bypass, a Potential Cause of Pulmonary Edema

Abstract

Since the development of flow-directed pulmonary arterial catheters the pulmonary-artery-occluded pressure (PAo) was widely used in cardiac surgical patients to evaluate left ventricular performance. The value of this catheter in monitoring a patient with persistently high pulmonary arterial pressure during bypass for coronary artery disease was demonstrated. This patient had gross pulmonary edema within an hour of the completion of the surgical procedure. Data from this case are compared with those from a more typical case, representative of a larger group, in which pulmonary arterial pressure was not elevated during bypass.