Respiratory Drive in the ARDS: Pathophysiology, Monitoring, and Therapeutic Interventions

Neural respiratory drive, i.e., the activity of respiratory centres controlling breathing, is an overlooked physiologic variable which affects the pathophysiology and the clinical outcome of acute respiratory distress syndrome... read more

1 in 5 Patients Die within 90 Days After LVAD Implantation

The aim of the study was to analyze early mortality after continuous-flow left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation which remains high. In the EUROMACS registry, approximately 1 in 5 patients die within 90 days... read more

Standardized EEG Analysis to Reduce the Uncertainty of Outcome Prognostication After Cardiac Arrest

In the majority of comatose cardiac arrest (CA) patients, the outcome remains indeterminate after application of ERC/ESICM prognostication algorithm. Standardized EEG background analysis enables accurate prediction of both... read more

Could Stress Ulcer Prophylaxis Increase Mortality in High-acuity Patients?

Although considerable uncertainty remains, the inferences from SUP-ICU and PEPTIC are consistent with the hypothesis that proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) increase the risk of death in patients with higher illness severity.... read more

Which Component of Mechanical Power is Most Important in Causing VILI?

Repeated applications of tidal energy inflict lung damage (VILI) when stress and strain exceed the limits of tissue tolerance. Inflation work and energy are the products of pressure and volume, which are loosely associated... read more

It’s Insane to Keep Using Mortality As a Primary Endpoint in Critical Care Trials

Mortality is an important endpoint, so we shouldn't ignore mortality trends entirely. However, the vast majority of these will be spurious. Thus, we should generally not change practice due to them. In the history of critical... read more

Tranexamic Acid in TBI – CRASH-3 Trial Treatment

The CRASH-3 trial is a multi-centre, randomised, placebo-controlled trial of the effects of tranexamic acid on death and disability in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Patients with reactive pupils and/or mild... read more

Relative Hyperglycemia Predicts In-Hospital Mortality in Critically Ill Patients

Unlike absolute hyperglycemia, relative hyperglycemia, as assessed by the stress hyperglycemia ratio, independently predicts in-hospital mortality in critically ill patients across the glycemic spectrum. Future studies should... read more

Critical Care Telemedicine: A Management Fad or the Future of ICU Practice?

Critical care telemedicine is a potential solution to the scarcity of critical care expertise, while quality and safe care can also be promoted through off-site surveillance, early warning capabilities, clinical decision... read more

The Faster Cooling Rate and More Stable Cooling Process in Endovascular Cooling Shorten Patients’ Time in ICU

This study conducted a meta-analysis to assess the effectiveness, stability, and safety of mild therapeutic hypothermia (TH) induced by endovascular cooling (EC) and surface cooling (SC) and its effect on ICU, survival rate,... read more

Clinically Significant Pleural Effusion in ICU

Clinically significant pleural effusion (PLEFF)—defined by a depth greater than or equal to 2 cm in a drainable location on thoracic ultrasound together with a potential adverse effect on patient progress—was detected... read more

Coronavirus (2019-nCoV): Evidence Relevant to Critical Care

The 2019 Coronavirus outbreak was declared a global Public Health Emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 30th January 2020. In order to ensure immediate access to relevant systematic reviews, this Cochrane... read more

Potential Therapy for Improving Sudden Cardiac Arrest Resuscitation Outcomes

The severity of cardiogenic shock following asystolic cardiac arrest is dependent on the length of cardiac arrest prior to cardiopulmonary resuscitation and is mediated by myocardial stunning resulting from mitochondrial... read more

Guidelines for the Management of Septic Shock and Sepsis-Associated Organ Dysfunction in Children

A large cohort of international experts was able to achieve consensus regarding many recommendations for the best care of children with sepsis, acknowledging that most aspects of care had relatively low quality of evidence... read more

Safe Transfer of the Brain-injured Patient

The document considers recent developments in the management of multiply-injured patients and those with acute ischaemic stroke. Whilst many of the principles of safe transfer are common to all seriously ill patients,... read more

Epinephrine During Resuscitation of Traumatic Cardiac Arrest and Increased Mortality

Epinephrine administered during in-hospital resuscitation was associated with lower 7-day survival rate in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) following trauma. While we examined the outcomes of selected... read more

Should We Treat Fever in Critically Ill Patients Without Acute Brain Pathology?

In one of the sessions at #LIVES2019 in Berlin, Prof. Frank Van Haren of Canberra Hospital, Australia, presented findings from the Randomised Evaluation of Active Control of Temperature versus Ordinary Temperature Management... read more

ICU Bloodstream Infections Reduced by 80 Percent

Bloodstream infections acquired in UK Intensive Care Units (ICUs) reduced by 80% between 2007 and 2012, according to research funded by Biomedical Research Centres (BRC). The findings are based on data collected from over... read more

Early Identification of Disease Progression in Patients with Suspected Infection Presenting to the ED

In patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with a suspected infection, the blood biomarker MR-proADM could most accurately identify the likelihood of further disease progression. Incorporation into an early sepsis... read more

Clinical Characteristics of Patients With 2019 Novel Coronavirus

In this single-center case series of 138 hospitalized patients with confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)–infected pneumonia (NCIP) in Wuhan, China, presumed hospital-related transmission of 2019-nCoV was suspected... read more

Management of Cardiogenic Shock Complicating Myocardial Infarction – 2019 Update

In general, randomized clinical trials in CS are difficult to perform and only three randomized trials adequately powered to detect differences in clinical outcomes achieved completion of the required number of patients. Based... read more

Health Coaching to Increase Appropriate Inhaler Use in COPD

Health coaching may provide a scalable model that can improve care for people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Baseline adherence and inhaler technique were uniformly poor and did not differ by... read more