Assessment and Impact of Intravenous Medication Fluid Administration in Critically Ill Patients With Acute Respiratory Failure

Background: Positive fluid balance early in critical illness is associated with poor outcomes. Reducing intravenous medication volume may mitigate volume overload. Objective: Assessment of fluid and medication administration and clinical outcomes in acute respiratory failure. Methods: Single-center, prospective observational study of hemodynamically stable adult patients in a medical intensive care unit (MICU) with acute respiratory failure. Results: Median cumulative total intake volume was 12 890 (interquartile range [IQR] = 8654-22 221) mL (n = 27), and median cumulative intravenous medication volume was 3563 (IQR = 2371-9412) mL over the first 7 days. Medication volume accounted for 27.6% of aggregate fluid volume. Median daily intravenous medication volume administered was 591 (IQR = 339-1082) mL. Cumulative fluid volume was associated with reduced ventilator-free days (r(2) = -0.393; P = 0.043), and cumulative fluid volumes during the first 3 and 7 days were associated with increased MICU length of stay (LOS +/- standard error 0.73 +/- 0.35 d/L, P = 0.047, and 0.38 +/- 0.16 d/L, P = 0.021, respectively). Cumulative medication volume administered significantly reduced the likelihood of mechanical ventilator liberation (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.917; 95% CI: 0.854, 0.984; P = 0.016) and MICU discharge (HR = 0.911; 95% CI: 0.843, 0.985; P = 0.019). Small-volume infusion may decrease cumulative intravenous medication volume by 38%. Conclusion and Relevance: Intravenous medication diluent contributes substantially to total fluid intake in patients with acute respiratory failure and is associated with poor outcomes. Reduction of intravenous medication fluid volume to improve clinical outcomes should be further investigated.