Case Description A 72-year-old man with past medical history significant for peripheral vascular disease, bilateral carotid stenosis, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and heavy tobacco use developed sudden severe chest pain and received sublingual nitroglycerin with pain resolution. The patient was able to walk to the ambulance, but on arrival in the emergency room had a systolic blood pressure of 6...

OBJECTIVES We investigated the association of nil per os (NPO) status and subsequent nutritional support with patient weight and length of stay (LOS) during admission for bronchiolitis in patients <2 years old. METHODS A retrospective chart review was performed of all patients <2 years old admitted to an academic pediatric hospital between November 2009 and June 2011 with a Current Procedural...

The use of intravenous fluids is routine in patients undergoing surgery or critical illness; however, controversy still exists regarding optimum fluid therapy. Recent literature has examined the effects of different types, doses, and timing of intravenous fluid therapy. Each of these factors may influence patient outcomes. Crystalloids consist of isotonic saline or balanced electrolyte solution...

INTRODUCTION Positive fluid balance during abdominal surgery has been associated with increased morbidity. We hypothesized that administration of large volumes of intravenous fluids in cardiac surgery is associated with increased mortality. METHODS Retrospective analysis of data on 1358 patients who underwent cardiac surgery from 2001 to 2005 at two major hospitals in Western New York. Patien...

BACKGROUND Isotonic saline has been proposed as a safer alternative to traditional hypotonic solutions for intravenous (IV) maintenance fluids to prevent hyponatremia. However, the optimal tonicity of maintenance intravenous fluids in hospitalized children has not been determined. The objective of this study was to estimate and compare the rates of change in serum sodium ([Na]) for patients adm...

Introduction Intravenous fluids are one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the hospital setting and yet the practice continues to fall short of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, with significant gaps in staff knowledge exposing patients to heightened morbidity and mortality. Aim Following the 2013 publishing of updated NICE guidelines on intravenous fl...

Melting point depression was used as an index of the water potential of rat tissues and serum. Organs removed from anesthetized rats were immediately frozen in liquid nitrogen and ground with mortar and pestle. Aliquots of the resulting frozen powder were suspended in chilled liquid silicone. While the suspension was vigorously stirred and warmed at a constant rate, the temperature of the melti...