Arterial Catheters

Arterial Catheterisation

An arterial chatheter is a thin, hollow tube
Placed into an artery (blood vessel) in the wrist, groin, or other location
Measures blood pressure more accurately than is possible with a blood pressure cuff
Also called; A-line, Art-line, Pressure line, Arterial line

Category: Others

Why Arterial Catheterisation Needed?

Low blood pressure (hypotension or shock) / High blood pressure (hypertension)

The arterial catheter allows accurate, second-to-second measurement of the blood pressure.

Severe lung problems

For checking the levels of oxygen or carbon dioxide in the blood more frequently than 3 to 4 times a day
The arterial catheter can be used to draw blood without having to repeatedly stick a needle into the person.
Can provide valuable information to adjust oxygen therapy or mechanical ventilator settings
The blood oxygen pressure measures from an arterial line give more detailed information than that from a pulse oximeter (a sensor that is clipped on to a finger, toe or earlobe) in a very ill person