A 67-year-old man is admitted to University Hospital for severe chest pain. A Swan-Ganz catheter is floated into the pulmonary artery, the balloon is inflated, and the pulmonary wedge pressure is measured. The pulmonary wedge pressure is used clinically to monitor which of the following pressures?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The pulmonary wedge pressure is used clinically to monitor the left atrial pressure, which is an indirect measurement of left ventricular end-diastolic pressure. The pulmonary artery diastolic pressure and systolic pressure are directly measured by the Swan-Ganz catheter. The pulmonary capillary pressure is estimated from the pulmonary wedge pressure.

A 67-Year-Old Man Is Admitted to University Hospital for Severe