Microprocessor-Based Robotic System for Control of Fluid Connections in the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory

During a cardiac catheterization, various fluid connections must be established between catheters, pressure transducers, saline flush solution, and room air to calibrate the pressure transducers, flush the catheters, and record pressure waveforms. This is currently done by the frequent manipulation of three-port stopcock valves. We have developed a microprocessor-based robotic system which fully automates routine catheter flushing, and allows the system user, from a remote location, to flush the catheters intermittently, to calibrate the pressure transducers, to inhibit routine functions during pressure waveform recording, and to set valve position so the user may flush the transducer dome. The time required to execute four tasks (1) routine catheter flushing, 2) intermittent catheter flushing, 3) pressure measurement, and 4) flushing the transducer dome) with and without the use of the control system was compared by two subjects with similar results. For the first subject, significant time was saved (p < 0.005) for each routine flush (15.1 ± 0.14 s), intermittent flush (8.9 ± 0.19 s), and pressure recording (15.5 ± 0.24 s). In a typical right and left heart catheterization with 20 routine flushes, eight intermittent flushes, and 16 pressure recordings, this would correspond to a total time savings of 622 ± 5 s, which could represent 15–20 percent of the total time spent after vessel access is achieved.