Episode 965: Oxygen Administration in Trauma Patients

Contributor: Aaron Lessen, MD

Educational Pearls:

Many trauma patients are placed on oxygen via non-rebreather A large, multicenter, controlled trial evaluated the outcomes of oxygen administration in trauma patients Patients were randomized to two groups 1. 8-hour restrictive oxygen strategy: only receiving oxygen when the patient's saturation dropped below 94%
2. 8-hour liberal oxygen strategy: 12-15 liters of oxygen per minute or fraction of inspired oxygen of 0.6-1.0 The study evaluated rates of death or major respiratory complications at 30 days There was no statistical difference between the two groups Therefore, there is no clear benefit to administering liberal...