[Recording effective capillary pressure: a useful technique in post-pneumonectomy edema].

Three cases of postpneumonectomy edema, in which hemodynamic stability was monitored with a Swan-Ganz catheter, are described. Measurement of pressure in the pulmonary capillary was based on the pulmonary artery occlusion curve. High capillary pressure and normal wedge pressure were observed in all 3 cases, suggesting that the rise in net filtration pressure as a consequence of excess flow is the pathogenic mechanism that triggers edema after pneumonectomy. We emphasize that measurement of effective pulmonary capillary pressure allows for more accurate assessment of the hemodynamic status of such patients than does the measurement of wedge pressure.