Effects of high infusion pressure and large-bore tubing on intravenous flow rates

An in vitro study was conducted to determine the maximum flow rates that can be obtained with commercially available intravenous (IV) catheters, when infusion pressure and IV tubing size are modified. Standard tubing (3.2 mm ID) and two sizes of experimental large-bore tubing (5.0 mm and 6.4 mm ID) were tested with tap water and diluted packed cells (hematocrit 45) at 600 mm Hg, 300 mm Hg, and gravity flow infusion pressure. The maximum flow rate obtained was 3,158 ml/min for tap water and 3,000 ml/min for diluted packed cells. The increases in flow rates from gravity to 300 mm Hg and from gravity to 600 mm Hg are significant (P less than 0.05) and provide up to 197% and 341% increases, respectively, for all catheter/tubing combinations tested. Large-bore tubing is most effective when used in conjunction with large-bore catheters. For the 8.5 French catheter, a change from standard (3.2 mm ID) to large-bore (6.4 mm ID) tubing resulted in a statistically significant (P less than 0.05) increase in flow rate of more than 200% regardless of infusion pressure.