[MikeyJ]

My partner's father had a biopsy this morning on a mass that was found in his pleural cavity.

He told us that when he went to the day surgery center, they put in an IV line and an arterial line. Why does one get an arterial line? I know they use arterial lines for ABG's, but what else do they do with them? My partners mom who has been an RN for 30 years doesn't really know, but she was thinking they may have done it to look at his blood pressure.

Does anyone know why they do this?

[Daytonite]

Arterial lines are used for direct blood pressure monitoring and arterial blood sampling for ABGs. Here is information on arterial lines

• http://www.icufaqs.org/ - Notes on ICU Nursing
  • http://www.icufaqs.org/ArterialLines.doc

[core0]

Originally Posted by sistermike

My partner's father had a biopsy this morning on a mass that was found in his pleural cavity.

He told us that when he went to the day surgery center, they put in an IV line and an arterial line. Why does one get an arterial line? I know they use arterial lines for ABG's, but what else do they do with them? My partners mom who has been an RN for 30 years doesn't really know, but she was thinking they may have done it to look at his blood pressure.

Does anyone know why they do this?

It would be kind of weird to put one in for a percutaneous biopsy. If they were doing an open biopsy then pretty much any open chest procedure will have an art line to watch blood pressure. The other possibility is that they may have put it in to squirt a little arterial contrast to enhance the lesion if they were having a hard time seeing it.

David Carpenter, PA-C

[CRNA2007]

If they did a mediasteinoscopy then they also utilize the the arterial line to ensure they do not compress the innominate artery while doing the mediateinoscopy as well as continual blood pressure monitoring. There should be no need to do ABGs for an outpatient procedure.

Originally Posted by sistermike

My partner's father had a biopsy this morning on a mass that was found in his pleural cavity.

He told us that when he went to the day surgery center, they put in an IV line and an arterial line. Why does one get an arterial line? I know they use arterial lines for ABG's, but what else do they do with them? My partners mom who has been an RN for 30 years doesn't really know, but she was thinking they may have done it to look at his blood pressure.

Does anyone know why they do this?

[MikeyJ]

Originally Posted by CRNA2007

If they did a mediasteinoscopy then they also utilize the the arterial line to ensure they do not compress the innominate artery while doing the mediateinoscopy as well as continual blood pressure monitoring. There should be no need to do ABGs for an outpatient procedure.

As far as I know they did a mediasteinoscopy -- that is where they do an incision between the sternum's correct?

[CVICURN2003]

Originally Posted by sistermike

As far as I know they did a mediasteinoscopy -- that is where they do an incision between the sternum's correct?

They did this in a DAY SURGERY facility? That is way too dangerous of a procedure to do in a day surgery facility. Even an uncomplicated one can become complicated (same reason you should only have a heart cath in a hospital where they can but you on cardio-pul bypass). I am glad everything turned out okay.

[MikeyJ]

Originally Posted by CVICURN2003

They did this in a DAY SURGERY facility? That is way too dangerous of a procedure to do in a day surgery facility. Even an uncomplicated one can become complicated (same reason you should only have a heart cath in a hospital where they can but you on cardio-pul bypass). I am glad everything turned out okay.

Well, it was a day surgery center at a hospital. It is an outpatient surgery center connected to the hospital.