[Doppler ultrasound in anesthesia and intensive care medicine]

The ultrasound Doppler technique is a non-invasive method for the evaluation of arterial and venous blood flow. It can be useful in anaesthesia and in intensive medicine for different purposes, e.g. for more exact blood pressure determination in difficult cases, in cases of blood supply disorders or as a helpful guide for the puncture of arterial and venous vessels. This technique has also been used successfully as a screening method of cerebral death, for the evaluation of flow rates during arterio-venous hemofiltration and for the investigation of the effects of peridural anaesthesia on peripheral resistance.