Comparison of European ICU patients in 2012 (ICON) versus 2002 (SOAP)
Over the 10‑year period between 2002 and 2012, the proportion of patients with sepsis admitted to European ICUs remained relatively stable, but the severity of disease increased. In multilevel analysis, the odds of ICU... read more
Effect of a Multifaceted Performance Feedback Strategy on Length of Stay Compared With Benchmark Reports Alone
In the context of ICUs participating in a national registry, applying a multifaceted activating performance feedback strategy did not lead to better patient outcomes than only receiving periodical registry reports. The extent... read more
Process Monitoring in the ICU
Throughout a patient's stay in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), accurate measurement of patient mobility, as part of routine care, is helpful in understanding the harmful effects of bedrest. However, mobility is typically measured... read more
Psychological Burnout and Critical Care Medicine
While you are likely proud to be a critical care medicine (CCM) practitioner, does work routinely leave you increasingly drained? Do you feel resentful about requests for "futile interventions" and unwilling to absorb others'... read more
Sepsis Reduces Bone Strength Before Morphologic Changes Are Identifiable
In a rodent sepsis model, trabecular bone strength is functionally reduced within 24 hours and is associated with a reduction in collagen and mineral elastic modulus. This is likely to be the result of altered biomechanical... read more
Alarm and Alert Fatigue in Critical Care
Todd Fraser, MD, speaks with Bradford D. Winters, PhD, MD, FCCM, about alarm and alert fatigue in critical care. Alarm fatigue is the desensitization that clinicians experience to frequent alarms, particularly those that... read more
Saving Lives in the ICU Through Artificial Intelligence
Hospitals today run according to evidence-based medicine. That makes for smart science. But for critical care, it can be a problem. A patient may appear normal, but if you had a sign that, in two to three hours, that patient... read more
How The Burn Trauma ICU Eliminated Central Line Infections
Is zero possible? In the case of central line infections, the answer was once no. A CLABSI (central line associated blood stream infection) was once considered a car crash, or an expected inevitability of care. When University... read more
Management of the Traumatized Airway
There is a lack of evidence-based approach regarding the best practice for airway management in patients with a traumatized airway. Airway trauma may not be readily apparent, and its evaluation requires a high level of suspicion... read more
Why Millennials are Choosing to be Physician Assistants, not Doctors
More and more young people are gravitating to the role of physician assistant over doctor. Several Delaware millennials cite its flexibility, condensed schooling, and cost as major reasons why they chose to become PAs. According... read more
Guidelines for Tracheal Intubation in Critically Ill Adults
The Intensive Care Society, Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, Difficult Airway Society and the Royal College of Anesthetists have combined to provide the "Guidelines for the management of tracheal intubation in critically... read more
Accuracy of Ultrasound Exam Performed by EM vs. Radiology Residents in the Diagnosis of Acute Appendicitis
Although the traditional approach to the diagnosis of acute appendicitis (AA) is using clinical methods, experience has shown that strict reliance on clinical data can lead to mismanagement or unnecessary surgery. US has... read more
Danger Signals in the ICU
Damage-associated molecular pattern activation and release is an important research for intensive care practitioners. It will add to our understanding of the phase and state of the innate immune response to an insult. Early... read more
Cardiac Output Monitoring: Throw it Out… or Keep it?
In critical care units, the shelf for cardiac output (CO) monitoring devices fills up with ever more innovative systems. Are these techniques useful, or are they expensive and irrelevant gadgets? There are arguments to defend... read more
An Exploratory Reanalysis of the Randomized Trial on Efficacy of Corticosteroids as Rescue Therapy for the Late Phase of ARDS
During active intervention, methylprednisolone was safe and effective in achieving disease resolution. Our findings support rapid glucocorticoid discontinuation post extubation as likely cause of disease relapse. Gradual... read more
Diagnostic Accuracy of Delirium Assessment Methods in Critical Care Patients
Delirium is a disorder of decreased ability to focus, sustain or shift attention, change in cognition and or perception. The main objective was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU... read more
Concise Review of Critical Care, Trauma and Emergency Medicine
A Quick Reference Guide of ICU and Er Topics. Most commonly encountered clinical scenarios and relevant topics are summarized in an easy to understand format. Can be used as quick reference guide during rounds, or during... read more
Prone Positioning of ARDS Patients
A prospective international observational prevalence study on prone positioning of ARDS patients: the APRONET (ARDS Prone Position Network) study. While prone positioning (PP) has been shown to improve patient survival in... read more
On Diagnosing Sepsis
Two years ago, a panel appointed by the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, referred to as a consensus conference, proposed a new definition for sepsis and new diagnostic... read more
Animal-assisted Intervention in the ICU: A Tool for Humanization
The combination of an aging population and advances in critical care medicine is resulting in a growing number of survivors of critical illness. Survivors' descriptions of their stay in an intensive care unit (ICU) are frequently... read more
Trends of Incidence and Risk Factors of VAP in Elderly Patients Admitted to French ICUs
This study assesses trends and risk factors of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) according to age, particularly in the elderly admitted to French ICUs between 2007 and 2014. Ventilator-associated pneumonia incidence is... read more
Clinical Care Review Systems in Healthcare
Clinical care review is the process of retrospectively examining potential errors or gaps in medical care, aiming for future practice improvement. The objective of our systematic review is to identify the current state of... read more
