J Trauma
-
Class I and II hemorrhage has been routinely treated clinically with 2-2.5 times the volume of shed blood as balanced electrolyte solution. Although this regimen has been shown to adequately restore arterial pressure in trauma patients, it is not clear that it uniformly restores regional perfusion. Since it is becoming apparent that the gut plays a major role in the development of the posttraumatic septic state, we studied the effects of graded doses of balanced electrolyte resuscitation on the mesenteric microcirculation. ⋯ Mean arterial pressure remained significantly lower than the baseline value in all of the LR groups. We conclude that in this model, HSD is superior to LR for restoration of blood pressure. In restoring A1 diameters, LR is equivalent to HSD only when volumes of balanced electrolyte two and three times shed blood volume are given.