Abstract
We examined risk factors associated with failure of arterial catheterization in the medical intensive care unit of a large urban teaching hospital. We analyzed 92 consecutive arterial catheterizations by internal medicine house staff and critical care fellows. Of the 92 attempts, 26.1% were done on femoral arteries, and 73.9% were done on radial arteries. Failure, which occurred in 28% of attempts, was more common in female patients (P <.001). The failure rate was 50.0% for attempts on femoral arteries and 20.6% on radial arteries. Systolic blood pressure was significantly lower in patients where the attempt failed ( P =.024). In univariate analyses, hemoglobin values were lower (P =.028) and number of percutaneous punctures were higher (P =.019) in patients where catheterization failed. After multivariate analysis, only gender and systolic blood pressure remained statistically significant. The strongest predictor of failure was female gender. A possible explanation not explored here could be smaller arterial size in female patients.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 166-172 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Journal of Intensive Care Medicine |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 2007 |
Keywords
- Arterial catheterization
- Education
- Intensive care unit
- Medical
- Ultrasonography
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine