North Texas Research Forum 2025
Files
Download Full Text (215 KB)
Division
North Texas
Hospital
Medical City Plano
Specialty
General Surgery
Document Type
Poster
Publication Date
2025
Keywords
resuscitation, trauma, infusion, gravity flow
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences | Surgery | Therapeutics | Trauma
Abstract
Study Objective: Time is a critical resource during the initial treatment of an injured patient. Fluid resuscitation is also a critical component of trauma care. Clinicians are faced with the need to actively resuscitate an injured patient while simultaneously working to provide them operative or procedural hemorrhage control as quickly as possible. In these circumstances, physicians must balance perceived flow efficiency with time required to place certain types of access devices, though little data exists to guide this decision process. This study aims to evaluate the infusion times of different sizes of peripheral and central venous catheters to optimize fluid administration in emergency settings. Design & Methods: This is an experimental study assessing fluid infusion times across various peripheral and central venous access devices. To eliminate extraneous influence, infusion times by gravity alone were compared across catheter types. We measured the time required to infuse crystalloid fluid (Lactated Ringer’s solution) through different cannula and catheter sizes. The infusion was performed in a standardized manner using gravity flow, with the fluid bag placed at a height of 3.5 feet from the catheter. The completion time for one liter of fluid to drain by gravity was recorded independently by two observers. Results: While an increase in catheter size generally correlated with improved flow rates, notable variations were observed between peripheral and central venous access devices. The study found that while 14G and 16G cannulas outperformed 18G in terms of infusion times, the 16G demonstrated a marginal advantage over a 9 Fr Cordis catheter. The findings are presented in the table below. Catheter gauge/Fr Time (seconds) 14G 456 16G 534 18G 785 20G 1174 Triple lumen 7Fr 1675 Cordis 9Fr 544 Conclusion: Understanding the flow time of various intravenous access devices is essential to making timely clinical decisions for fluid resuscitation in trauma patients. Based on our data, the time required to place a Cordis catheter is not justified for volume resuscitation alone if the patient has amenable anatomy for the timely placement of 14G or 16G peripheral IVs. Further research comparing the rapid infuser and the infusion times of blood products is warranted.
Original Publisher
HCA Healthcare Graduate Medical Education
Recommended Citation
Robert, Chris; Wong, Enoch; Bassa, David; Pigneri, Danielle; and Granet, Paul, "Optimizing Fluid Resuscitation: Balancing Access efficiency and Infusion Speed in Trauma care" (2025). North Texas Research Forum 2025. 105.
https://scholarlycommons.hcahealthcare.com/northtexas2025/105