An umbilical artery catheter (UAC) allows blood to be taken from an infant at different times, without repeated needle sticks.
It can also be used to continuously monitor a baby's blood pressure. An umbilical artery catheter is most often used if: The baby needs breathing help.
Umbilical artery catheter provides direct access to the arterial system, thus enabling arterial blood sampling as well as the measurement of the systemic arterial blood pressure.
It is one of the commonly performed procedures in extremely premature neonates.
The procedure is relatively easy to perform but requires practice.