Blood draw question

[broosevader]

Hello, nursing student here with a question about blood draws for a co-worker. He was wondering why his daughter that suffers from asthma has to have a blood draw taken from her wrist rather than her forearm. I'm assuming better O2 readings in this area but am unsure if that is correct. Thanks

[hypocaffeinemia, BSN, RN]

Hello, nursing student here with a question about blood draws for a co-worker. He was wondering why his daughter that suffers from asthma has to have a blood draw taken from her wrist rather than her forearm. I'm assuming better O2 readings in this area but am unsure if that is correct. Thanks

She required an ABG- Arterial Blood Gas. The most common artery to use is the radial artery at the wrist, as it is easy to locate and there is typically redundant blood supply to the hand in case the flow is compromised.

Normal blood draws are from veins. Overview: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arterial_blood_gas

[LTC Lady]

Unless they are doing an ABG or Arterial Blood Gas. This is done via an artery in the wrist. Just a thought :)