Table 1.
Summary of studies detailing radial artery catheterisation in conscious participants. EMLA, eutectic mixture of local anaesthetic; N, no; SA, short axis; Y, yes.
| Study | No. of patients (control/ultrasound) | Location | Outcomes | Approach (short/long axis) | Anaesthetised | Sedation | Operator choice of side | Definition of first-attempt success (defines ‘attempt’ and ‘success’ | Mode of analgesia | EMLA | Waveform analysis | First-attempt success rate |
Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palpation |
Ultrasound |
|||||||||||||||
| Events | Total | Events | Total | |||||||||||||
| Shiver and colleagues20 (2006) | 60 (30/30) | Emergency department | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Number of attempts (iii) Time (iv) Number of cannulas used |
SA | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Not described | N | N | 15 (50%) | 30 | 26 (87%) | 30 | |
| Seto and colleagues21 (2015) | 698 (351/347) | Cardiac catheterisation laboratory | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Number of attempts (iii) Time |
SA | N | Y; as per local practice | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Intra-arterial or s.c. lidocaine as per local practice | N | N | 44% | 65% | Intra-arterial verapamil/nitroglycerine for spasm prophylaxis | ||
| Hansen and colleagues22 (2014) | 40 (40/40) | Operating theatre (cardiac) | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Number of catheters |
SA | N | Not mentioned | N | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine s.c. for palpation group only | N | N | 23 (58%) | 40 | 38 (95%) | 40 | Crossover study |
| Levin and colleagues23 (2003) | 69 (35/34) | Operating theatre | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Number of catheters |
SA | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine s.c. | N | N | 12 (34%) | 35 | 21 (62%) | 34 | |
| Peters and colleagues15 (2015) | 125 (62/63) | Operating theatre (cardiac) | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Number of redirects (v) Complications |
SA | N | Y, as per local practice | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine s.c. | N | N | 56% | 71% | No significant difference between palpation/ultrasound | ||
| Ueda and colleagues24 (2015) | 749 (256/249/Doppler 254) | Operating theatre | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Complications |
SA | Y and N; at discretion of anaesthetist | Not mentioned | Y | Y; transduced arterial waveform | Lidocaine s.c. | N | N | 101 (39%) | 256 | 132 (53%) | 249 | |
| Zaremski and colleagues25 (2013) | 183 (91/92) | Cardiac catheterisation laboratory | (i) ‘Primary’ success rate (ii) Time |
Operator discretion | N | Not mentioned | Y | Number of attempts not clearly defined; catheter insertion | Not described | N | N | 87% | 87% | No difference between palpation/ultrasound | ||
| Tangwiwat and colleagues26 (2016) | 100 (50/50) | Operating theatre (neurosurgery) | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Complications |
Both | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Not described | N | N | 65% | 69% | No significant difference between palpation/ultrasound | ||
| Kiberenge and colleagues27 (2018) | 260 (128/132) | Operating theatre | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Number of catheters |
SA | Y and N; at discretion of anaesthetist | Not mentioned | Y | Y; transduced arterial waveform | Not described | N | N | 48% | 83% | |||
| Gopalasingam and colleagues28 (2017) | 40 (40/40) | Operating theatre (cardiac) | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Number of catheter (v) Pain |
SA | N | Not mentioned | N | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine injection | N | N | 70% | 90% | Crossover study | ||
| Gibbons and colleagues29 (2020) | 40 (20/20) | Emergency department | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts (iv) Complications |
SA | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine injection | N | N | 0% | 75% | |||
| Yu and colleagues30 (2019) | 60 (30/30) | Operating theatre | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Complications |
SA | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; catheter insertion | Lidocaine injection | N | N | 73% | 97% | |||
| Men and colleagues31 (2022) | 92 (46/46) | Operating theatre (obstetrics) | (i) First-attempt success (ii) Time (iii) Number of attempts |
SA | N | Not mentioned | Y | Y; transduced arterial waveform | Median nerve block with lidocaine | N | N | Ultrasound-guided cannulation in both groups: control 78% vs median nerve block 96% | ||||
EMLA, eutectic mixture of local anaesthetic; N, no; SA, short axis; Y, yes.