IV Therapy and Intake and Output Review

This set covers vocabulary and core concepts related to IV administration, rate calculations, time tracking, and intake/output monitoring.

Primary IV

An IV used for fluid administration that typically involves a larger volume ($1000\,mL$) and continuous flow.

IV Pump Rate

The rate of infusion calculated in $mL/hr$. If the calculation results in a decimal, it must be rounded to the nearest whole number.

Gravity Infusion Rate

The rate of infusion calculated in drops per minute ($gtt/min$).

Macrodrip Sets

IV tubing sets that have a drop factor of $10$, $15$, or $20\,gtt/mL$.

Microdrip Sets

IV tubing sets that always have a drop factor of $60\,gtt/mL$.

Drop Factor

The size of the drops delivered by the IV tubing, expressed as $gtt/mL$.

Infusion Time

The total amount of time (expressed in hours and minutes) that it will take to infuse an ordered amount of IV fluid.

Completion Time

The specific clock time (expressed in $24$-hour notation) when the ordered amount of IV fluid will be completely infused.

Intake

A record of all food that is liquid at room temperature, parenteral fluids, tube feedings, and catheter or tube irrigants, expressed in $mL$.

Output

Any liquid produced by the body that can be measured, including urine, emesis, gastric drainage, wound drainage, and diarrhea.

Ice Chips Intake Rule

A calculation rule where ice chips are recorded as melting to half ($1/2$) of their original Volume.

Parenteral Intake

Any IV fluid that infuses into the patient, calculated by multiplying the hourly infusion rate by the number of hours the IV fluid infused.

Bolus Feeding

A specific amount of nutritional formula administered through a tube at one time (e.g., $250\,mL$ every $6$ hours).

Hourly Feeding

A nutritional formula administered via a feeding pump at a specific hourly amount (e.g., $60\,mL$ every hour).

Output Exclusions

Fluids produced by the body that are not included in measurable output totals, specifically sweat, tears, and blood drawn from the vein.

Daily Weight

A clinical method used to evaluate a patient's fluid balance.

Insensible Water Loss

The continuous and gradual loss of water that occurs through the lungs and the skin.