Pulmonary artery catheterization

[Gregory]

The pulmonary artery is the artery that carries blood from the right side of the heart into the lungs. In pulmonary artery catheterization, a catheter is passed through the right atrium and ventricle and into the pulmonary artery. This procedure is sometimes a useful measure of overall heart function in people who are critically ill, particularly when fluids are being given intravenously. Such people include those who have severe heart or lung disorders (such as heart failure, heart attack, abnormal heart rhythms, or pulmonary embolism when these disorders are accompanied by complications), those who have just undergone heart surgery, those who are in shock, and those who have severe burns.
Pulmonary artery catheterization is also done to measure pressure in the right heart chambers and to estimate pressure in the left heart chambers, the amount of blood the heart pumps per minute (cardiac output), resistance to blood flow in the arteries that carry blood from the heart (peripheral resistance), and the volume of blood. This procedure can provide useful information about why a person