This review focuses on the development, current techniques, and clinical use of continuous intravascular blood gas monitoring (CIBM) devices in anaesthesia and intensive care. The operating principles, range of application, performance, limitations, costs, and impact on patient treatment and outcome, are discussed. Studies of early and currently available CIBM devices were analysed. At present, the Paratrend 7+® (PT7+®) for adults and Neotrend™ (NT™) for newborns are the only commercially available CIBM systems. The PT7+® contains three optical sensors to measure Po2, Pco2 and pH, as well as a thermocouple to measure temperature. The NT™ is a modification of the PT7+® to continuously monitor Po2, Pco2, pH and temperature in newborns. Under laboratory conditions, good performance over a wide range of blood gas values was observed with the Paratrend 7® (PT7®). Performance in the clinical setting was not as satisfactory, especially for Po2 values. However, the performance and accuracy of CIBM devices appear to be sufficient for clinical use and they are being used clinically in selected patient groups. Several factors affecting the performance of CIBM are considered. Br J Anaesth 2003: 91; 397-40
