Fluid Resuscitation in Burned Patients

This article focuses on the type of fluid available and respective indications in the course of burned patients resuscitation according to the clinical situation. In burned patients, fluid resuscitation aims at preventing complications due to severe hypovolaemia and at achieving a satisfying level of mean arterial pressure to ensure adequate tissue perfusion. Fluid resuscitation should ideally have no interactions with clot formation, have a composition close to that of the extracellular space and be isotonic to avoid cerebral volume variations. It should have a high-volume expansion property to avoid excessive fluid volume replacement that could contribute to the development of coagulopathy and complications such as abdominal compartment syndrome. However, no fluid gathers all these properties at one time and fluid choice in burn resuscitation remains a subject of debate.