Complications of brachial artery catheterization: prospective evaluation with the Doppler ultrasonic velocity detector.

A prospective evaluation of catheter-induced arterial injury was canied out in 100 consecutive patients who anderwenZ 104 cardiac catheterizations via the brachial artery. Tbe Doppler ultrasonic v e l o c i detector was utillzed to noninvspively assess brachial, radial and ulnar arterial signals and pre88ure& Brachial artery o h c tions occurred in 18 patients (17 percent), two-thirds of whom had no, or only transient, symptoms of ischemia. Six patients developed palpable pulses during the immediate period after catheterization. Complications correlated with duration of indwelling arterial catheter. The