Question

While in the ICU, a client's status changes. The health care providers suspect heart failure. Which of the following diagnostic procedures would give the staff information about pulmonary capillary pressures, which will lead to the most appropriate interventions?

a) Hemodynamic monitoring
b) Echocardiography
c) Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging
d) Radionuclide ventriculography

Answer 1

The most appropriate diagnostic procedure to measure pulmonary capillary pressures in a client with suspected heart failure is hemodynamic monitoring. It involves the use of catheters to directly measure pressures, providing crucial information for managing critical cardiac conditions.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine the most appropriate diagnostic procedure for measuring pulmonary capillary pressures in a client with suspected heart failure, we should consider the options provided. The correct choice is a) Hemodynamic monitoring, as this involves threading thin catheters into the bloodstream to measure pressures in the pulmonary capillaries directly. Options b) Echocardiography, c) Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and d) Radionuclide ventriculography provide different types of information, such as the heart's structure and function, but they do not directly measure pulmonary capillary pressures.

Hemodynamic monitoring is particularly used for critically ill patients in the ICU and allows health care providers to gauge the severity of heart failure by assessing the pressures within the heart and lungs. This invasive procedure yields valuable information that helps guide interventions to manage such critical cardiac events effectively.