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COMPLICATIONS OF INTRAVENOUS THERAPY: REDUCTION BY BUFFERING OF INTRAVENOUS FLUID PREPARATION
Author(s) -
Eremin O.,
Marshall V.
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1977.tb114619.x
Subject(s) - medicine , intravenous infusions , complication , intravenous fluid , intravenous therapy , incidence (geometry) , intravenous use , anesthesia , surgery , physics , optics
Local complications of intravenous infusions have become a common cause of morbidity in hospitals. Two consecutive groups of patients were studied: the patients in the first group had received standard non‐buffered intravenous fluid preparations with pH from 3·6 to 6·0; the second group of patients received fluids which were buffered to a neutral pH. The incidence of local complications in the first group was high (58%), with phlebitis being the most common complication which occurred in 43% of patients. The addition of a buffer to the fluids just before the infusion reduced the incidence of all complications in the second group of patients to 28%, and that of phlebitis to 19%. It will be shown that the complications can be significantly reduced by buffering the infusion fluids.