Patients
A total of 30 patients were enrolled in the study, which was approved by die Clinical Research Practices Committee of the Bowman Gray School of Medicine/North Carolina Baptist Hospital. Informed consent was obtained from patients’ next of kin before study initiation. All patients enrolled in the study were admitted to the Multidisciplinary Intensive Care Unit of North Carolina Baptist Hospital. The primary admitting service of each potential study patient had previously determined that the patient would benefit from hemodynamic monitoring. Patients were divided equally into three groups corresponding to the three PA oximetry systems being evaluated. The three PA oximetry systems were evaluated sequentially based on availability of equipment from the manufacturers. The order of testing was Oximetrix 3, SAT-2, and HEMOPRO,. In addition to PA catheters, all patients had arterial lines placed for continuous blood pressure monitoring. All patients had PA occlusion pressures (PAOP) and thermodilution cardiac outputs measured.
During the course of the study, no patient received either intravenous fat embolism or propofol, both of which have been reported to confound the measurement of Sv02. No patient with a total bilirubin level greater than 2 mg/dl was enrolled in the study.