Intravenous fluid therapy - an under-recognized patient safety opportunity.

Inappropriate fluid regimens are rarely documented as being responsible for patient harm, although there is considerable circumstantial evidence to suggest that fluid overload may be a considerably under-estimated source of patient morbidity and mortality. The GIFTASUP fluid management guidelines published in 2008 offer a valuable opportunity to consider a more standardised approach to fluid management, possibly in the context of developing routine hospital services to support good practice.