Fluid Responsiveness Tests in Critically Ill Patients During Admission to the Intensive Care Unit

Patients admitted to the intensive care unit are very often hemodynamically unstable. In these cases fluid responsiveness tests should be performed to assess whether the patient would benefit from the fluid administration.

However, fluid responsiveness tests have many limitations including lack of spontaneous breathing, necessity of invasive mechanical ventilation with tidal volume of > 8 mL/kg ideal body weight, regular hearth rhythm, and lack of abdominal hypertension.

In the study, the investigators evaluated the prevalence of conditions enabling the performance fluid responsiveness tests in patients admitted to the intensive care unit. An assessment was performed within the six hours after admission to the intensive care unit. Evaluation was based on transthoracic echocardiography, clinical examination of the patients, and data derived from anamnesis.

The following fluid responsiveness tests were included into assessment: passive leg raising test, end-expiratory occlusion test, pulse pressure variation, stroke volume variation, velocity time integral variation in left ventricle output track, tidal volume challenge, inferior vena cava diameter variation, and superior vena cava diameter variation.

The aim of the study was to assess how many patients have the conditions allowing performance fluid responsiveness tests during admission to the intensive care unit.

Inclusion criteria

• Adult patients admitted to the intensive care unit

Exclusion criteria

• Age under 18
• The researcher unavailable in the intensive care unit
• Patient assessment cannot be completed within the first six hours after admission to the ICU