Comparison of two techniques of goal directed fluid therapy in elective neurosurgical patients - a randomized controlled study.

Background: Goal directed fluid therapy (GDFT) may be a rational approach to adopt in neurosurgical patients, in whom intravascular volume optimization is of utmost importance. Most of the parameters used to guide GDFT are derived invasively. We postulated that the total volume of intraoperative intravenous fluid administered during elective craniotomy for supratentorial brain tumours would be comparable between two groups receiving GDFT guided either by the non-invasively derived plethysmography variability index (PVI) or by stroke volume variation (SVV).