Objective: To determine the correlation between central
venous pressure (CVP) measured by conventional central
venous access and ultrasonographic measurement of
internal jugular vein (IJV) height and inferior vena cava (IVC)
diameter. Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional,
convenience sampling observational study. Results: 25
patients from the Emergency Department (ED) Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) were
studied between 1st March and 30th April 2013. The median
age was 63 years (95% CI 54-67). There was a significant
correlation between IJV height and CVP using central
venous access (r=0.64 p<0.001). Correlation between IVC
diameter in end expiration and CVP was 0.74 (p<0.001). An
IJV height measurement >8cm predicted a CVP >8cm H2O
(sensitivity 71.4%, specificity of 83.3%). Conclusion:
Measurement of IJV height and IVC diameter by
ultrasonography correlates well with invasive CVP and is
useful for the assessment of volume status in critically ill
patients in the ED.
Central Venous Pressure