Effect of elevation on intravenous extravasations.

Nursing interventions used to treat intravenous extravasations (infiltrations) generally include application of warmth or cold, elevation, and no treatment. In this article, the effect of elevation on infiltrations of 0.45% sodium chloride and 3% saline made intentionally into healthy volunteers is reported. Elevation had no effect on pain, surface area of induration, or volume of infiltrate remaining as quantified by magnetic resonance imaging. A comparison of these data with previously published findings concerning the effect of warmth versus cold on infiltrations shows that no one treatment is better overall in decreasing the symptoms or speeding re-absorption of the infiltrate.