Hypovolemia

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Hypovolemia
Classification and external resources
ICD-10
E86, R57.1, T81.1
ICD-9
276.52
MedlinePlus
000167
MeSH
D020896
In physiology and medicine, hypovolemia (also hypovolaemia, oligemia or shock) is a state of decreased
blood volume; more specifically, decrease in volume of blood plasma.[1][2] It is thus the intravascular component
of volume contraction (or loss of blood volume due to things such as hemorrhaging or dehydration), but, as it
also is the most essential one, hypovolemia and volume contraction are sometimes used synonymously.
Hypovolemia is characterized by salt (sodium) depletion and thus differs from dehydration, which is defined as
excessive loss of body water.[3]

Contents

1 Causes
2 Diagnosis
o 2.1 Stages of hypovolemic shock
2.1.1 Stage 1
2.1.2 Stage 2
2.1.3 Stage 3
2.1.4 Stage 4
3 Treatment
o 3.1 First aid
o 3.2 Field care
o 3.3 Hospital treatment
4 History
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Causes
Common causes of hypovolemia are[4]

Loss of blood (external or internal bleeding or blood donation[5])

Loss of plasma (severe burns[6][7] and lesions discharging fluid)
Loss of body sodium and consequent intravascular water; e.g. diarrhea or vomiting
Vasodilation (involving widening of blood vessels) such as trauma leading to dysfunction of nerve
activity on blood vessels and inhibition of the vasomotor center in the brain or drugs such as
vasodilators typically used to treat hypertensive individuals.

Excessive sweating is not a cause of hypovolemia, because the body eliminates significantly more water than
sodium.[8]

Diagnosis
Clinical symptoms may not be present until 1020% of total whole-blood volume is lost.
Hypovolemia can be recognized by tachycardia, diminished blood pressure,[9] and the absence of perfusion as
assessed by skin signs (skin turning pale) and/or capillary refill on forehead, lips and nail beds. The patient may
feel dizzy, faint, nauseated, or very thirsty. These signs are also characteristic of most types of shock.
Note that in children, compensation can result in an artificially high blood pressure despite hypovolemia.
Children will typically compensate (maintain blood pressure despite loss of blood volume) for a longer period
than adults, but will deteriorate rapidly and severely once they do begin to decompensate. This is another reason
(aside from initial lower blood volume) that even the possibility of internal bleeding in children should almost
always be treated aggressively.
Also look for obvious signs of external bleeding while remembering that people can bleed to death internally
without any external blood loss. ("Blood on the floor, plus 4 more" = intrathoracic, intraperitoneal,
retroperitoneal, pelvis/thigh)
Also consider possible mechanisms of injury that may have caused internal bleeding such as ruptured or bruised
internal organs. If trained to do so and the situation permits, conduct a secondary survey and check the chest
and abdomen for pain, deformity, guarding, discoloration or swelling. Bleeding into the abdominal cavity can
cause the classical bruising patterns of Grey Turner's sign or Cullen's sign.

Stages of hypovolemic shock

Usually referred to as "Class" of shock. Most sources state that there are 4 stages of hypovolemic shock,[10]
however a number of other systems exist with as many as 6 stages.[11]
The 4 stages are sometimes known as the "Tennis" staging of hypovolemic shock as the stages of blood loss
(under 15% of volume, 15-30% of volume, 30-40% of volume and above 40% of volume) mimic the scores in a
game of tennis: 15, 15-30, 30-40 and 40.[12] It is basically the same as used in classifying bleeding by blood
loss.
Stage 1

Up to 15% blood volume loss (750 mL)

Compensated by constriction of vascular bed
Blood pressure maintained
Normal respiratory rate (12-20 breaths per minute)
Pallor of the skin (paleness)
Normal mental status[13] to slight anxiety
Normal capillary refill[13] (less than 3 seconds)
Normal urine output[13]

Stage 2

1530% blood volume loss (7501500 mL)

Cardiac output cannot be maintained by arterial constriction
Tachycardia >100bpm
Increased respiratory rate (more than 20 respirations per minute)
Systolic blood pressure maintained
Increased diastolic blood pressure
Narrow pulse pressure (gap between the systolic and diastolic pressure)

Pale, cold, and clammy skin as blood flow is directed away to major organs such as the heart, lungs, and
brain
Mildly anxious/Restless
Delayed capillary refill[13]
Urine output of 20-30 milliliters/hour[13]

Stage 3

3040% blood volume loss (15002000 mL)

Systolic BP falls to 100mmHg or less
Classic signs of hypovolemic shock
Marked tachycardia (increased heart rate) >120 bpm
Marked tachypnea (increased rate of respiration) >30 respirations per minute
Alteration in mental status (confusion,[13] anxiety, agitation)
Sweating with cool, pale skin
Delayed capillary refill[13]
Urine output of approximately 20 milliliters/hour[13]

Stage 4

Loss greater than 40% (>2000 mL)

Extreme tachycardia (>140[13]) with weak pulse
Pronounced tachypnea
Significantly decreased systolic blood pressure of 70 mmHg or less
Decreased level of consciousness, lethargy,[13] coma[13]
Skin is sweaty, cool, and extremely pale (moribund)
Absent capillary refill[13]
Negligible urine output[13]
Survival is extremely unlikely

Treatment
This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding
citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2009)
Minor hypovolemia from a known cause that has been completely controlled (such as a blood donation from a
healthy patient who is not anemic) may be countered with initial rest for up to half an hour. Oral fluids that
include moderate sugars and electrolytes are needed to replenish depleted sodium ions. Furthermore the advice
for the donor is to eat good solid meals with proteins for the next few days. Typically, this would involve a fluid
volume of less than one liter, although this is highly dependent on body weight. Larger people can tolerate
slightly more blood loss than smaller people.
More serious hypovolemia should be assessed by a physician.

First aid
External bleeding should be controlled by direct pressure. If direct pressure fails, a tourniquet should be used in
the case of severe hemorrhage that cannot be controlled by direct pressure. Tourniquet use in civilian first-aid,
is now advocated as part of the C-ABC approach. Other techniques such as elevation and pressure points are
not always effective but should still be attempted. As a rule of thumb, anywhere you can feel a pulse can be
used as a pressure point to stop bleeding (with the obvious exception of the carotid pulses!). If a first-aid
provider recognizes internal bleeding the life-saving measure to take is to immediately call for emergency
assistance.

Field care
Emergency oxygen should be immediately employed to increase the efficiency of the patient's remaining blood
supply. This intervention can be life-saving. [14]
The use of intravenous fluids (IVs) may help compensate for lost fluid volume, but IV fluids cannot carry
oxygen in the way that blood can, however blood substitutes are being developed which can. Infusion of colloid
or crystalloid IV fluids will also dilute clotting factors within the blood, increasing the risk of bleeding. It is
current best practice to allow permissive hypotension in patients suffering from hypovolemic shock[15] both to
ensure clotting factors are not overly diluted but also to stop blood pressure being artificially raised to a point
where it "blows off" clots that have formed.

Hospital treatment
If the hypovolemia was caused by medication, the administration of antidotes may be appropriate but should be
carefully monitored to avoid shock or the emergence of other pre-existing conditions[citation needed].
Fluid replacement is beneficial in hypovolemia of stage 2, and is necessary in stage 3 and 4.[13] Blood
transfusions coupled with surgical repair are the definitive treatment for hypovolemia caused by trauma[citation
needed]
. See also the discussion of shock and the importance of treating reversible shock while it can still be
countered.
For a patient presenting with hypovolemic shock in hospital the following investigations would be carried out:

Blood tests: U+Es/Chem7, FBC, Glucose, Cross-match

Central Venous Line/Blood Pressure
Arterial line/Arterial Blood Gases
Urine output measurements (via urinary catheter)
Blood pressure
SpO2 Oxygen saturations

The following interventions would be carried out:

IV access
Oxygen as required
Surgical repair at sites of hemorrhage
Inotrope therapy (Dopamine, Noradrenaline) which increase the contractility of the heart muscle
Fresh frozen plasma/whole blood

History
This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding
citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2009)
Historically a term desanguination (from Latin sanguis, blood) was in use, meaning a massive loss of blood.
The term was widely used by the Hippocrates in traditional medicine practiced in the Greco-Roman civilization
and in Europe during the Middle Ages. The word was possibly used to describe the lack of personality (by
death or by weakness) that often occurred once a person suffered hemorrhage or massive blood loss.
In cases in which loss of blood volume is clearly attributable to bleeding (as opposed to, e.g., dehydration),
most medical practitioners of today prefer the term exsanguination for its greater specificity and
descriptiveness, with the effect that the latter term is now more common in the relevant context.[16]