The use of finger-stick blood to assess lactate in critically ill surgical patients

Abstract Background Using finger-stick capillary blood to assess lactate from the microcirculation may have utility in treating critically ill patients. Our goals were to determine how finger-stick capillary lactate correlates with arterial lactate levels in patients from the surgical intensive care unit, and to compare how capillary and arterial lactate trend over time in patients undergoing resuscitation for shock. Methods Capillary whole blood specimens were obtained from finger-sticks using a lancet, and assessed for lactate via a handheld point-of-care device as part of an “investigational use only” study. Comparison was made to arterial blood specimens that were assessed for lactate by standard laboratory reference methods. Results 40 patients (mean age 68, mean APACHEII 18, vasopressor use 62%) were included. The correlation between capillary and arterial lactate levels was 0.94 (p