PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Sende, J
AU  - Jabre, P
AU  - Leroux, B
AU  - Penet, C
AU  - Lecarpentier, E
AU  - Khalid, M
AU  - Margenet, A
AU  - Marty, J
AU  - Combes, X
TI  - Invasive arterial blood pressure monitoring in an out-of-hospital setting: an observational study
AID  - 10.1136/emj.2008.060608
DP  - 2009 Mar 01
TA  - Emergency Medicine Journal
PG  - 210--212
VI  - 26
IP  - 3
4099  - http://emj.bmj.com/content/26/3/210.short
4100  - http://emj.bmj.com/content/26/3/210.full
SO  - Emerg Med J2009 Mar 01; 26
AB  - Background: Non-invasive arterial blood pressure measurement is often inaccurate in emergency unstable patients. A study was undertaken to assess the feasibility of out-of-hospital intra-arterial catheterisation in haemodynamically unstable patients and to evaluate the correlation between invasive and non-invasive arterial pressure values.Methods: In this prospective 2-year observational study conducted by mobile emergency medical units, the success rate of arterial catheterisation was calculated and blood pressure values measured invasively and non-invasively after successful catheterisation were compared.Results: 94 patients were included. The success rate for catheterisation (44 radial access, 50 femoral access) was 86% (95% CI 79% to 93%). Bias and precision in invasive versus non-invasive comparisons were −0.1, 38 mm Hg for systolic pressure and 4.2, 27 mm Hg for diastolic pressure. Values differed by more than 20 mm Hg in over 40% of patients. Invasive measurement led to 79 changes in vasoactive treatment in 51 patients.Conclusion: Emergency out-of-hospital invasive arterial blood pressure monitoring in haemodynamically unstable patients is highly feasible. Discrepancies between invasive and non-invasive measurements are common and highlight the value of early out-of-hospital monitoring.