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Helen Adelberg, MD
Beverly Hills, Calif

Arch Intern Med. 1980;140(1):133.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.

—The excellent article by Kind et al in the April ARCHIVES (139:413-415, 1979) heightens the need for users of intravenous administration sets to be aware of a potential danger, that of poor flow regulation and its consequences.

First, here are two pertinent facts: infusion sets with conventional pinch clamps afford very poor regulation. Typically, the flow rate will deviate some 40% or more just ten minutes after the final adjustment is made.¹ For every 1,500 hospital patients exposed to infusions, one dies due to pulmonary edema.² Nurses and others in the hospital charged with the actual settings of flow rates are, presumably, informed of such potential danger and take appropriate measures. However, leaving this task to a patient at home without including an appropriate warning may substantially increase the risk of an already hazardous procedure.

In a recent article,³ sets obtained from one major . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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