Femoral Pulse Recording-Infant

Femoral Pulse Recording-Infant

Femoral Pulse Recording

Summary of Recommendation and Evidence

Population

Recommendation

Grade
(What's This?)

Screening of both Genders

This screening is recommended a best practice.

B

The femoral artery starts in the lower abdomen and continues down each thigh.  Femoral pulse recording includes checking a newborn's femoral pulse, or feeling his/her heartbeat by pressing on the artery in his/her groin. 

How to Check a Femoral Pulse in a Newborn

Step 1

Position the baby in a safe location and remove the diaper to expose her groin on both sides. Put a large clock with a sweeping second hand in plain view. Set the clock so you can easily read it without having to hold it in your hands.

Step 2

Find the newborn's femoral pulse in her groin. The femoral pulse is located about halfway between the two boney prominences between her pubic bone and the crest of her hip bone. Medical professionals would call the area the inguinal ligament near the midpoint between the symphysis pubis and the iliac crest.

Step 3

Apply gentle pressure with the tips of your index and middle fingers of both hands to the femoral pulses. Feel both sides of the newborn’s femoral pulse at the same time so you can compare them. Both sides should have equal and strong pulses. Diminished pulse usually means poor cardiac output or ineffective vasoconstriction. Poor or unequal pulses indicate possible interruption of the thoracic aorta or other circulatory problems.

Step 4

Compare the femoral pulse with the newborn’s radial pulse. Locate the baby’s radial pulse on the inside of her wrist, just below her thumb. Apply gentle pressure with the tips of your index and middle fingers to her radial pulse at the same time as you apply pressure to her femoral pulse. You should be able to feel the femoral pulse before you feel the radial pulse. Delayed or weakened femoral pulses as compared to radial pulses indicated possible coarctation of the baby’s aorta.

Step 5

Count the number of heartbeats in 30 seconds. Multiply the result by two to learn the newborn’s pulse. According to the National Library of Medicine, a newborn’s pulse should be 70 to 190 beats per minute. A sleeping baby has a lower pulse than a crying baby, but a newborn should always have femoral pulses. Follow up absent or abnormal femoral pulses with an echocardiogram and cardiac catherization to confirm coarctation. For best results, check the newborn’s pulse when she is in a calm state and repeat measurements about the same time each day.

Step 6

Secure the baby’s diaper and wash your hands.

Role of Femoral Pulse in human body

Femoral Pulse plays an important role in human body. Problem in femoral pulse points towards the possibility of following conditions:

Coarctation of the aorta

The aorta carries blood from the heart to the vessels that supply the body with blood. If part of the aorta is narrowed, it is hard for blood to pass through the artery. This is called coarctation of the aorta. It is a type of birth defect.

Causes

Aortic coarctation is one of the more common heart conditions that are present at birth (congenital heart defects). It is most often diagnosed in children or adults under age 40.

Coarctation of the aorta may be seen with other congenital heart defects, such as:

  • Bicuspid aortic valve
  • Defects in which only one ventricle is present
  • Ventricular septal defect

Absent femoral pulse

The femoral pulse is palpated below the inguinal ligament and about midway between symphysis pubis and anterior superior iliac spine, it is absent in ceratin conditions.

Causes

  • Coarctation of the aorta
  • Cardiac tamponade
  • Cardiac arrhythmias
  • Aortic bifurcation occlusion
  • Peripheral vascular disease
  • Diabetes mellitus
  • Shock

Femoral Nerve Dysfunction

Femoral nerve dysfunction is a loss of movement or sensation in parts of  the legs due to nerve damage.

Damage to a nerve such as the femoral nerve is called mononeuropathy. Mononeuropathy usually means there is a local cause of the nerve damage, although disorders that involve the entire body (systemic disorders) can also cause isolated nerve damage (such as occurs with mononeuritis multiplex).

Causes

The usual causes of femoral nerve dysfunction:

  • Direct injury (trauma)
  • Prolonged pressure on the nerve
  • Compression or entrapment of the nerve by nearby parts of the body or disease-related structures (such as a tumor)