Correlating monitor cuff pressure with manual?

Published

Hello fellow ICU nurses:

Question: do you routinely correlate your monitor NIBP with the manual cuff with every admission and every patient? i don't mean verifying aline pressures with the manual or monitor cuff....

just curious of what your routine is.

Thanks,

E.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Never. I trust the NIBP and/or a-line more than my old ears.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.

Nope. Never thought about it! But when I worked on the floor, and used those little mobile thingys, I always verified a strange BP with manual. Go figure!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

whew thank you!!!

last week i got into an argument with this "doctor" who said..."you verified that pressure with a manual, right??" the patient's systolic was 90, and prehospital was 104. i had no reason to believe it wasn't right. also, i have worked in 3 separate places and never saw a nurse routinely correlate the 2.

then this "doctor" and i use the term loosely, said "see, i used to be a nurse and i ALWAYS correlated my NIBP with a manual."

apparantly, he was a better nurse than the rest of us. i swear i think dr's who used to be nurses are even worse than the actual thing.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.

then this "doctor" and i use the term loosely, said "see, i used to be a nurse and i ALWAYS correlated my NIBP with a manual."

He also apparantly had more time to spare than the rest of us!!

I think the space-lab monitors used in ICUs today are much more reliable that the little pull-around things. I guess they're called Dynamaps. Now, those could be very inaccurate, especially if someone had an irregular HR. I don't have that problem with the ones I use now.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med-Surg.

Not every patient. But I don't intervene based on a machine. If it's so high or low that I need to call a doc, or implement a protocol I'm going to verify it manually.

But as a routine. No.

:)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ER.
Not every patient. But I don't intervene based on a machine. If it's so high or low that I need to call a doc, or implement a protocol I'm going to verify it manually.

But as a routine. No.

:)

If my a-line is dampened and my monitor NIBP is acting up, or if my monitor is acting up and I don't have an A-line, AND my pt's pressure is trending down into the danger zone, THEN I'll do a pressure manually. But that's about it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Not every patient. But I don't intervene based on a machine. If it's so high or low that I need to call a doc, or implement a protocol I'm going to verify it manually.

But as a routine. No.

:)

I agree with Tweety. But I do check NIBP on every pt with an A-line to see if they correlate especially on vaso drips.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.
I agree with Tweety. But I do check NIBP on every pt with an A-line to see if they correlate especially on vaso drips.

Here's a question for you guys: When you verify an A-line, do you use the A-line arm or the other one? Do you think it matters?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Here's a question for you guys: When you verify an A-line, do you use the A-line arm or the other one? Do you think it matters?

I use the opposite arm. You can use the arm that has the a-line but I only do that if I can't take one on the opposite arm due to B/P-stick precautions,shunt, etc. I do not like to put the back pressure on the A-line arm so I don't lose the a-line.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.
I use the opposite arm. You can use the arm that has the a-line but I only do that if I can't take one on the opposite arm due to B/P-stick precautions,shunt, etc. I do not like to put the back pressure on the A-line arm so I don't lose the a-line.

I usually only check it once, if at all. And I use the A-line arm because people with vascular disease can have totally different BPs on each arm.

I asked that because we have a doc who b****ed one time that we weren't using the A-line arm for the reasons stated above. "Always use the A-line arm" he says in an authoratative way.

We were having trouble with a patient one night, and someone set off the BP cuff and this doc saw the A-line dampen and then go flat. He freaked out, "What the hell's happened to his pressure???" Then he says, "Why do you have it on THAT arm? You always use the other arm for this reason!!!"

Just one of many funny little quirks about him!! We always say, "He must have read some new study last night"

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I usually only check it once, if at all. And I use the A-line arm because people with vascular disease can have totally different BPs on each arm.

I asked that because we have a doc who b****ed one time that we weren't using the A-line arm for the reasons stated above. "Always use the A-line arm" he says in an authoratative way.

We were having trouble with a patient one night, and someone set off the BP cuff and this doc saw the A-line dampen and then go flat. He freaked out, "What the hell's happened to his pressure???" Then he says, "Why do you have it on THAT arm? You always use the other arm for this reason!!!"

Just one of many funny little quirks about him!! We always say, "He must have read some new study last night"

Love those quirky MDs :rolleyes: If there is more than 10 points difference S/D then I will do the a-line arm, my daughter has a native co-arch and her B/Ps are drastically different in all extremities.

I guess as long as you don't try taking an NIBP around the neck all is good :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion