British Journal of Anaesthesia, 2000, Vol. 85, No. 4 501-503
© 2000 The Board of Management and Trustees of the British Journal of Anaesthesia
Editorial |
Editorial I
The utility of pulmonary artery catheterization
Some of the most fascinating aspects of intensive care medicine are the controversies about patient management. A paradigm is the utility of the pulmonary artery catheter. Its use has been a matter of contention, more so since a paper by Connors and co-workers in 1996.1 This study of patients in a group of American teaching hospitals demonstrated an association between the use of pulmonary artery catheters in the first 24 h of intensive care and increased mortality. During the subsequent discussion, there were calls for a moratorium on the use of the pulmonary artery catheter and, more constructively, for randomized controlled trials to examine patient outcome after use of the device.2
In this issue of the journal, a study of apparently similar design to the Connors’ paper describes very different findings and will renew the flames of this debate.3 Before discussing these contrasting works, let us consider how to evaluate diagnostic
(1) Technological capability
(2) Range of possible uses
(3) Diagnostic accuracy
(4) Therapeutic impact
(5) Patient outcome
Conflict of interest
References