Lactate levels help determine organ perfusion. What is the target lactate level to correct to?

• A. Less than 2 mmol/L
• B. Less than 4 mmol/L
• C. Greater than 2 mmol/L
• D. Equal to normal (1.0–2.0 mmol/L)

Answer: (A)

Lactate rises when tissues aren’t receiving enough oxygen and switch to anaerobic metabolism, so it’s a useful gauge of global perfusion during resuscitation. The practical target is to bring lactate to less than 2 mmol/L, which signals that perfusion has improved enough to reduce anaerobic metabolism. While normal lactate is roughly 0.5–1.5 mmol/L, achieving an exact normal value can be difficult in the acute phase; what matters is moving toward the lower end of the range. A level under 4 would still raise concern for ongoing hypoperfusion, and aiming for a value greater than 2 suggests insufficient perfusion. So, the best target to correct to is less than 2 mmol/L.