This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Sign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages without signing in

Thermodilution (measurement of cardiac output)

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

The most convenient method for estimating the cardiac output requires the measurement of blood cooling following the injection of cold saline. Measurements are performed on the right side of the heart using a Swan-Ganz catheter.

It is assumed that there is no intra-cardiac shunt, so that the output of the right side of the heart is identical to the output of the left side of the heart.

The principles of the method are:

  • a known volume of cold saline of known temperature is injected into the right atrium
  • a thermister in the pulmonary artery measures the resulting cooling of the blood
  • the cooling profile permits the estimation of cardiac output

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.