Fluid resuscitation is widely used in the management of critically ill patients. There are a variety of different fluids available to doctors but there is little evidence regarding how effective they are. One of the most commonly used fluids, a hydroxyethyl starch was recently approved by the TGA for use in Australia. This project aims to compare how effective and safe this fluid is compared to another widely used fluid, saline, for resuscitation of critically ill patients in intensive care.
This project aims to establish agreement on appropriate methods to analyse evidence in support of medical treatments directed at laboratory tests (such as blood cholesterol) and to classify the evidence according to how convincing it is. The goal of those developing new drugs targeting one of these laboratory tests is to have their evidence sufficiently convincing that the drug will be approved for sale and used because doctors and patients believe its use will translate into a patient benefit.