#VETERINARY MAINTENANCE FLUID CALCULATOR HOW TO#

#VETERINARY MAINTENANCE FLUID CALCULATOR HOW TO#

So how do we incorporate this into our daily practice?īefore considering how to incorporate fluid therapy, we need to back up and refresh ourselves on how fluids are distributed in the body. Recommendations for continued evaluation of our patients while on fluid therapy, and using goal-directed resuscitation, are currently in favor. “one size fits all”) are no longer supported instead, current recommendations urge that fluid therapy is detailed for the individual patient, taking into consideration their clinical illness, needs/deficits, and comorbidities. Standardized fluid therapy recipes (a.k.a. The hydrostatic and oncotic pressure gradients between the microvascular lumen and the interstitium rely heavily on the integrity and health of the endothelial glycocalyx.Īs advances in understanding fluid therapy and the physiology behind its use occur, many debates and disagreements have developed in both human and veterinary medicine about fluid therapy.

Identification of this structure has led to a revision of Starling’s forces, as we have realized the significant role of the glycocalyx in how the body responds to fluid therapy (and explains why our fluid plans don’t always do what we think they are going to do).

More recently, this theory has been updated after the identification of the endothelial glycocalyx, a meshwork of long glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) linked to other proteins (glycoproteins and proteoglycans) that lines the luminal surface of the vasculature. Historically, fluids were thought to operate within the parameters established by Starling’s forces where hydrostatic pressure worked to push fluids out of the vasculature, and oncotic pressure worked to retain fluid within. These differences translate into varying effects in our patients. Different types of fluids (such as crystalloids, natural or synthetic colloids, or blood products) have different compositions in terms of tonicity, acid-base, oncotic properties, hemostatic and immunologic effects. The primary goal behind using intravenous fluids is to maintain or restore intravascular volume, tissue perfusion, and reverse dehydration. Intravenous fluid therapy has been a cornerstone of medical and surgical management in human, as well as veterinary medicine for decades.

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Veterinary maintenance fluid calculator