CVP and Arterial Line Monitoring

Central venous pressure (CVP) describes the pressure of blood in the thoracic vena cava, near the right atrium of the heart. CVP reflects the amount of blood returning to the heart and the ability of the heart to pump the blood into the arterial system.

An arterial line is a thin catheter inserted into an artery. It is most commonly used to monitor the blood pressure real-time (rather than by intermittent measurement).