Transfemoral balloon catheterization for hepatic wedge pressure measurements.

A method for obtaining wedged hepatic venous pressures with a balloon catheter is described. The catheter is introduced percutaneously into the femoral vein. This method is easier to perform than the venous cutdown technique used with Swan-Ganz catheters, and the results are more representative of average parenchymal pressure than standard wedged catheter measurements are.