The Speed of Sound: A New Measure to Single Out High-Risk PE Patients

The Speed of Sound: A New Measure to Single Out High-Risk PE Patients

Predicting which pulmonary embolism patients will do well with oral anticoagulation and which will decompensate is a bit murky, at best. The treatment of pulmonary embolism (PE) has evolved quite a bit in just the past few... read more

Long-term Recovery Following Critical Illness in an Australian Cohort

Long-term Recovery Following Critical Illness in an Australian Cohort

Almost all data on 5-year outcomes for critical care survivors come from North America and Europe. The aim of this study was to investigate long-term mortality, physical function, psychological outcomes and health-related... read more

Association Between Fluid Balance and Outcomes in Critically Ill Children

Association Between Fluid Balance and Outcomes in Critically Ill Children

Fluid overload is common and is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality in critically ill children. Additional research should now ideally focus on interventions aimed to mitigate the potential for harm associated... read more

Diagnostic Stewardship for Healthcare-Associated Infections

Diagnostic Stewardship for Healthcare-Associated Infections

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, prolonged hospital stays, and unnecessary cost. The financial stakes of HAIs for hospitals were underscored in 2008 when the Centers... read more

Characteristics and Outcomes of ICU Survivors

Characteristics and Outcomes of ICU Survivors

A significant number of intensive care unit survivors evaluated 3 months after discharge had psychological, respiratory, motor, and socioeconomic problems; these findings highlight that strategies aimed to assist critically... read more

Social Determinants of Health: A Missing Link in Emergency Medicine Training

Social Determinants of Health: A Missing Link in Emergency Medicine Training

The health of a population depends upon several factors, including disease, public health initiatives, and the social determinants of health (SDH). These factors often converge in the emergency department (ED) where the impact... read more

Alleviating ICU Survivors’ Burden

Alleviating ICU Survivors’ Burden

In a review paper, a team of international researchers highlights how critical illness and critical care affect longer-term outcomes. According to the authors, the severity of acute illness determines the degree of impairment... read more

Inpatient antiviral treatment reduces ICU admissions among influenza patients

Inpatient antiviral treatment reduces ICU admissions among influenza patients

Administering inpatient antiviral influenza treatment may reduce admissions to the ICU among adults hospitalized with flu, according to a study presented at ID Week 2017, an infectious diseases meeting. While interventions... read more

Challenges and Opportunities for a Precision Medicine Approach to Critical Illness

Challenges and Opportunities for a Precision Medicine Approach to Critical Illness

Precision medicine in critical care is a key part of our present and future. However, many challenges limit its application for all patients in the ICU. Complex acute illness among patients with multi-morbidity, integrated... read more

Enhancing Delirium Case Definitions in Electronic Health Records

Enhancing Delirium Case Definitions in Electronic Health Records

Delirium is an acute confusional state, associated with morbidity and mortality in diverse medically ill populations. Delirium may be better captured by composite outcomes, including both administrative claims data and elements... read more

Frailty Association with Perioperative Morbidity in Patients After Ambulatory General Surgery Operations

Frailty Association with Perioperative Morbidity in Patients After Ambulatory General Surgery Operations

Frailty is associated with increased perioperative morbidity in common ambulatory general surgery operations, independent of age, type of anesthesia, and other comorbidities. Surgeons should consider frailty rather than chronological... read more

Reduced Risk of Acute Exacerbation of COPD after Bariatric Surgery

Reduced Risk of Acute Exacerbation of COPD after Bariatric Surgery

Obesity is common among individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and associated with increased COPD morbidities. However, little is known about the impact of weight reduction on COPD-related outcomes... read more

Organ Dysfunction, Injury and Failure in Acute Heart Failure

Organ Dysfunction, Injury and Failure in Acute Heart Failure

Managing patients with AHF remains a clinical challenge and current therapies have uncertain impacts on long-term morbidity and mortality. The use of therapies that prevent or reverse congestion-induced organ injury may represent... read more

PICU Repeated and Unplanned Readmissions Within 1 Year

PICU Repeated and Unplanned Readmissions Within 1 Year

Unplanned readmissions occurred in a sizable minority of PICU patients. Patients with complex chronic conditions and particular conditions were at much higher risk for readmission. In this multi-institutional study, we found... read more