Intra-Operative Events During Cardiac Surgery are Risk Factors for the Development of Delirium in the ICU

Risk factors for delirium following cardiac surgery are incompletely understood. The aim of this study was to investigate whether intra-operative pathophysiological alterations and therapeutic interventions influence... read more

Outcomes of ARDS in Mechanically Ventilated Patients With Cirrhosis

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is common in mechanically ventilated patients with cirrhosis but is not independently associated with increased mortality. The mean age in 181 eligible patients was 53 ± 11 years;... read more

Candida Bloodstream Infection Under Veno-arterial ECMO Therapy

Cavayas et al. recently described invasive fungal infections in patients under extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) of the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization registry. They found a 1.2% prevalence of Candida... read more

The Effect of Vitamin C on Clinical Outcome in Critically Ill Patients

In a mixed population of ICU patients, vitamin C administration is associated with no significant effect on survival, length of ICU or hospital stay. In cardiac surgery, beneficial effects on postoperative atrial fibrillation,... read more

Accuracy of Quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment Score to Predict Sepsis Mortality

Overall, quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score outperforms systemic inflammatory response syndrome in predicting sepsis outcome, but quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score has relative strengths/weaknesses... read more

Epinephrine, Inodilator, or No Inotrope in VA-ECMO Implantation

Early epinephrine therapy within the first 24 h after cannulation for venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) was associated with poor survival compared to patients with or without any inodilator therapy.... read more

Improving Outcomes for ICU Survivors

In response to the many challenges faced by ICU survivors today, there has been an increasing need to relieve this burden. Despite that many clinical trials have been implemented to find new strategies, post-intensive care... read more

Collaborative Practice in Critical Care Settings

This practical and evidence-based workbook offers a series of assessment, implementation and evaluation activities for professionals working in critical care contexts. Designed to improve the quality of care delivery,... read more

Collaborative Practice in Critical Care Settings

Enteral vs. Parenteral Nutrition in Septic Shock

The strong paradigm of favoring the enteral over the parenteral route in critically ill patients has been challenged. As a consequence, updated guidelines recommend withholding enteral nutrition in patients with uncontrolled... read more

Noninvasive Ventilation in Pneumonia-induced Early Stage Mild ARDS

Treatment with noninvasive ventilation (NIV) did not reduce the need for intubation among patients with pneumonia-induced early mild acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), despite the improved PaO2/FIO2 observed with... read more

Blood Cultures From Arterial Catheters Reliable for Detection of Bloodstream Infection in PICUs

Cultures of arterial catheter–drawn blood are reliable for the detection of bloodstream infection in PICUs. The study group consisted of 138 patients admitted to the general or cardiac PICU in 2014–2015 who met the following... read more

The Speaker Gender Gap at Critical Care Conferences

There is a speaker gender gap at critical care conferences, with male faculty outnumbering female faculty. This gap is more marked among physician speakers than those speakers representing nursing and allied health professionals.... read more

Diagnosis of Nonventilated Hospital-acquired Pneumonia

Nonventilated hospital-acquired pneumonia (NV-HAP) poses several barriers for diagnosis compared with VAP, and the available knowledge is limited. A call for further research in diagnosis of nonventilated HAP is urgent.... read more

Microbial Strategies to Reduce Pathogens and Drug Resistance in Clinical Settings

Healthcare‐associated infections (HAIs) are a global concern, affecting all western hospitals, and profoundly impairing the clinical outcome of up to 15% of all hospitalized patients. Persistent microbial contamination... read more

Mental Health Medication Use In Parents After A Child’s PICU Admission

This was the first large study to examine mental health medication use in parents after PICU admission for their children. Antidepressant and anxiolytic incidence rates for parents with critically ill children increased... read more

Blood Culture Results Before and After Antimicrobial Administration in Patients With Severe Sepsis

Among patients with severe manifestations of sepsis, initiation of empirical antimicrobial therapy significantly reduces the sensitivity of blood cultures drawn shortly after treatment initiation. Of 3,164 participants... read more

Occupational Therapy in the ICU

The role of occupational therapists in ICU rehabilitation is not currently well established. Current interventions in the ICU are dominated by physical rehabilitation with a growing role in communication and delirium... read more

Myocardial Ischemia During Ventilator Weaning

This observational study showed the pulmonary edema (WiPO) occurred in a significant number of critically ill patients who failed a first spontaneous breathing trial (SBT), while cardiac ischemia (WiCI) was less frequent.... read more

Mobilization Practices for Patients with Burn Injury in Critical Care

Mobilization therapy of patients with burns in the ICU was characterized by a low mobility level during mechanical ventilation with a low functional status at hospital discharge. Of the 74 patients admitted, 66% were placed... read more

Vasoactive Medication and Randomized Clinical Trials

Vasoactive medication is one of the cornerstones in the treatment of critically ill patients in shock. Shock can be defined as a failure of the circulatory system to provide adequate tissue perfusion resulting in cellular... read more

Ramelteon for Prevention of Postoperative Delirium

Ramelteon 8 mg did not prevent postoperative delirium in patients admitted for elective cardiac surgery. Incident delirium was measured twice daily using the Confusion Assessment Method-ICU. The safety outcome was... read more

Traditional vs. Alternative Metrics to Measure the Impact on Critical Care Medicine

In this analysis of major pulmonary and critical care journals the correlation between traditional publishing metrics and Altmetric Attention Scores (AAS) was fair, with a strong positive correlation between citations and... read more