Bedside Hemodynamic Monitoring

Abstract

The introduction of the flow-directed catheter by Swan and associates¹ in 1970 has had a remarkable impact on the management of critically ill patients. The ability to measure pulmonary-capillary wedge pressure and cardiac output at the bedside has led to the development of bedside hemodynamic monitoring — a procedure that is now performed daily in most hospitals in the United States.Swan² estimates that between one and two million flow-directed catheters have been inserted since 1970. The widespread use of this catheter in the past nine years has clearly established that it is indeed possible to catheterize the pulmonary artery . . .