Liberal vs Restricted Fluid Therapy in Abdominal Surgery: A Large RCT

This large randomized controlled trial from Australia compared liberal versus restricted fluid therapy in patients undergoing major abdominal surgery. The primary endpoint, probability of disability-free survival, showed absolutely no difference between the two groups.

However, analysis of secondary outcomes revealed a higher incidence of surgical site infection, sepsis, acute kidney injury, and need for renal replacement therapy in the restricted fluid group compared to the liberal fluid group. It's crucial to note, however, that supplementary data demonstrated minimal weight change in both groups, not reaching the threshold of 2.5 or 3 kilograms.