🎤 Live from IFAD 2017 – Interview with Conference Organizer Prof. Manu Malbrain
🎬 "Okay, ready? Three, two, one..."
Hi everyone! We're here live at the International Fluid Academy Day 2017, and I'm joined by the conference organizer himself, Prof. Manu Malbrain.
🗣️ So Manu, what's the key message from the conference this year?
Manu:
"The core message is simple but powerful:
Fluids should be treated as drugs.
Just like antibiotics, we must think about fluids in terms of indication, type, dose, duration, and eventually, de-escalation."
💉 He draws a parallel with the Four D's of antibiotic therapy:
Drug – Choose the right fluid: crystalloids, glucose, colloids, or blood.
Dose – It depends on the context:
For resuscitation, you might give 30 ml/kg in 3 hours (per Surviving Sepsis Campaign), though that may be too much or too little depending on the patient.
For maintenance, the dose is often around 1 ml/kg/h, equaling 20–25 ml/kg/day.
Duration – Fluids shouldn't just continue indefinitely.
De-escalation – Just as you reduce antibiotics when appropriate, fluids need stopping or active removal when no longer needed.
🌟 Manu adds that we also need to consider the Four Indications for fluid therapy:
Resuscitation
Maintenance
Replacement (e.g., for losses via vomiting or diarrhea)
Nutrition – "We often forget that nutrition is also a fluid!"
🎓 This year, IFAD has successfully brought together fluid experts, nutritionists, and stewardship advocates. In addition to workshops on antibiotic stewardship, there's now a strong push for fluid stewardship—the idea that every ICU should have a dedicated steward overseeing fluid therapy.
"And maybe in the future, we'll also see sepsis management stewardship too."
🗓️ So Manu, what are you most looking forward to today?
Manu:
"Well, it's Friday—so definitely the gala dinner tonight! And I'm looking forward to meeting the Mayor of Antwerp. He might even show up for a selfie—he's quite the character. Look him up!"
🎉 Thank you, Manu, for your time and all the work you've done to make IFAD 2017 such a fantastic event.
📍 #IFAD2017 | #FluidStewardship | #CriticalCare | #FOAMed
