What is the daily maintenance fluid requirement for a 5 kg infant?

• A. 500 mL
• B. 300 mL
• C. 700 mL
• D. 1000 mL

Answer: (A)

Maintenance fluid needs in infants are based on weight, using a guideline of about 100 mL per kilogram per day for the first 10 kg. For a 5 kg infant, that’s 5 × 100 = 500 mL per day. This amount covers baseline physiological needs and typical insensible losses. Some may calculate a nearby figure using the hourly rule (roughly 4 mL/kg/h for the first 10 kg), which would be about 20 mL/hour for a 5 kg infant, yielding around 480 mL per day—close to 500 mL when rounded. So the daily maintenance requirement is 500 mL.