Background and objective: We measured the physical performance error of commercial syringe pumps incorporating the Diprifusor® module to deliver propofol by target-controlled infusion in a laboratory experiment.

Methods: Three infusion devices (Graseby 3500®; Fresenius Vial Master TCI®; Alaris TIVA-TCI®) were studied when infusing propofol at six different target concentrations (1, 1.5, 2, 3, 5, 8 µg mL−1) over 10 min. This procedure was repeated five times to average each target. Precision measurements were based on the volume delivered and a mean performance error was calculated.

Results: The mean performance error bandwidth for all pumps was from −2.07 to 4.22% with a 95% confidence interval always <4.5%. There was a higher variability at lower target concentrations associated with lower infusion rates. The Alaris TIVA-TCI® pump showed the largest overall bias whereas the Fresenius Vial Master TCI® pump had the smallest divergence and the lowest variation across all target concentrations. The Graseby 3500® pump had the smallest range in mean performance error with an acceptable variation (95% CI <2%).

Conclusions: Despite the differences between the pumps, which may be related to the synchronization of the hardware components, the absolute inaccuracies in the physical performance were low and presumably negligible from a clinical point of view.