The reliability of laboratory data from blood samples collected through pulmonary artery catheters.
Blood samples obtained through quadruple-lumen Swan-Ganz catheters in ten critically ill patients provided reliable results after withdrawal of a total of 2.2 mL (including 1.2 mL of dead space) for hematocrit tests and 3.2 mL (including 1.2 mL of dead space) for plasma sodium tests.