Essential IV medicines that enable hospital care

Intravenous medicines, or IV medicines, are delivered directly into the bloodstream. They are used in hospitals when rapid, controlled, or precise medicine delivery is needed, including in emergency medicine, intensive care, surgery, and oncology. Our broad portfolio of IV medicines spans across oncology, anti-infectives, anesthetics and analgesics, and critical care, supporting reliable patient care across hospitals and healthcare settings worldwide.

What are IV medicines?

Intravenous (IV) medicines remain fundamental to healthcare, used to treat millions of patients each year. Administered directly into the bloodstream, they enable healthcare professionals to deliver medicines quickly and precisely.1 They are among the most widely used therapies in hospital care, supporting nearly every specialty.

Patient hand with intravenous line and monitoring clip while resting in a hospital bed.

A broad portfolio of IV medicines

Our portfolio includes more than 160 IV medicines across key therapeutic areas: oncology, anti-infectives, anesthetics and analgesics, and critical care medicines. Our products support healthcare professionals in delivering patient care across a wide range of hospital and acute care settings globally. 

Oncology medicines

Our IV oncology therapies treat multiple forms of cancer, including solid tumors and hematological malignancies. Even as new targeted treatments are developed, IV oncology medicines remain an important component of treatment and supportive care.

Anti-infectives

IV anti-infective medicines are commonly used to treat serious bacterial, fungal, and viral infections when oral treatment is not appropriate or when rapid therapeutic action is needed. Our anti-infectives portfolio includes a variety of antibiotics, antifungals and antivirals, enabling clinicians to choose the most targeted option.

Anesthetics and analgesics

Medicines administered intravenously play an important role before, during, and after surgical procedures. These include general and local anesthetics for use during surgery or other procedures, neuromuscular-blocking and reversal agents as well as therapies for anxiety and pain management.

Critical care medicines

Patients in intensive care often require IV medicines to support cardiovascular, neurological, and other critical conditions. Our critical care portfolio includes cardiovascular medicines, anticoagulants to prevent and treat blood clotting disorders, antiemetics to manage nausea and vomiting, central nervous system medicines for neurological conditions and other therapies used to manage complex or life-threatening conditions.

>1 billion
peripheral intravenous catheters are used each year to deliver IV medicines or fluids. 2

~7 out of 10 
antimicrobials administered to patients in hospitals are delivered via IV.3

>160 medicines
in our comprehensive portfolio, supporting patient care across core therapeutic areas: anesthesia and analgesia, oncology, anti-infectives and critical care.

Supporting safe medication administration

Safe preparation and administration of IV medicines is critical. Medication preparation, labeling, storage, and administration processes are designed to help ensure patients receive the correct medicine, dose, and treatment at the appropriate time.

Advances in packaging, labeling, product presentation and digital identification technologies can support medication safety and traceability. Examples include ready-to-administer formats, standardized labeling practices including scannable barcodes that can assist in inventory management and product verification.

Hands removing a pharmaceutical vial from refrigerated medical storage.
Our innovation and development programs support safe medicine administration

From manufacturing to the point of care

Delivering IV medicines to patients requires a complex ecosystem involving manufacturing, quality systems, supply networks, pharmacies, healthcare professionals, and clinical workflows.

Fresenius invests in production capacity, quality systems, and resilient supply chains that support the availability of essential medicines used in hospitals every day to help ensure continuity of care. Reliable access to IV medicines remains an important component of global healthcare system preparedness and patient care.

FAQ

IV medicines are treatments administered directly into a vein. This allows health care professionals to deliver medicines quickly and accurately.

IV medicines are commonly used in emergency medicine, intensive care, surgery, oncology, neonatal care, and other hospital settings. They may be used when patients need rapid treatment or when oral medicines are not possible or appropriate.

References

1. Kruer RM, Jarrell AS, Latif A. Reducing medication errors in critical care: a multimodal approach. Clinical Pharmacology: Advances and Applications. 2014;6:117-126. doi:10.2147/CPAA.S48530.

2. Cleveland Clinic. Peripheral IV — Peripheral Intravenous Catheter (PIVC). Last updated April 27, 2023. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/24930-peripheral-iv.

3. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Key messages: Antimicrobial use in healthcare settings. Published September 21, 2021. Available at: https://antibiotic.ecdc.europa.eu/en/get-informed/key-messages/antimicrobial-use-healthcare-settings