Abstract
Diagnostic peritoneal lavage is an important adjunct in the evaluation of blunt trauma. The open technique has proven to be safer, though more time consuming, than the closed percutaneous technique. A significant time- consuming aspect of the procedure is the infusion and drainage of the peritoneal lavage fluid. With the use of cystoscopy irrigation tubing, infusion time for one liter of Ringer’s lactate averaged 2.9 minutes compared to 14.4 minutes when using IV fluid tubing. Similarly, effusion time was 2.3 minutes rather than 9.8 minutes. These differences are significant at the 0.0001 level. The average time saved was 19 minutes, allowing more rapid assessment and treatment of these critically injured patients.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 615-616 |
Number of pages | 2 |
Journal | Journal of Trauma - Injury, Infection and Critical Care |
Volume | 29 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 1989 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery
- Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine