Does Lactate Clearance Prognosticates Outcomes in ECMO Therapy

Changes in lactate levels after ECMO implantation is an important tool to assess effective circulatory support and it is found superior to single lactate measurements as a prognostic sign of mortality in our study. Based... read more

Ron Daniels Responds to Study on Sepsis Mortality Rates

New research presented at this year’s ESICM LIVES conference (the annual meeting of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine) shows that in rich countries overall, mortality from sepsis has fallen by around a quarter... read more

Proton-Pump Inhibitor Prophylaxis in the ICU

Critical illness can disrupt local and systemic mechanisms that protect against upper gastrointestinal bleeding, a condition that may be associated with increased mortality, particularly among patients receiving extracorporeal... read more

Chasing Mortality Endpoints is a Fool’s Errand

"There is no mortality benefit for that." How many times have you heard that? The implication is usually the same: that intervention is a waste of time. A smart, evidence-based clinician wouldn't bother with it. But, what... read more

Decontamination of Oral or Digestive Tract for Patients in the ICU

The study by Wittekamp and colleagues in this issue of JAMA evaluating strategies for decontamination of mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) fills an important gap in the evidence regarding these... read more

Fluid overload, de-resuscitation, and outcomes in critically ill or injured patients

Sepsis is associated with generalised endothelial injury and capillary leak and has traditionally been treated with large volume fluid resuscitation. Some patients with sepsis will accumulate bodily fluids. The aim of this... read more

Effect of Dexmedetomidine on Mortality and Ventilation in Sepsis Patients

Dexmedetomidine provides sedation for patients undergoing ventilation; however, its effects on mortality and ventilator-free days have not been well studied among patients with sepsis. This randomized clinical trial compares... read more

Effect of Targeted Polymyxin B Haemoperfusion on 28-Day Mortality in Patients With Septic Shock and Elevated Endotoxin Level

In adult patients with septic shock and high circulating endotoxin activity, does the use of polymyxin B hemoperfusion therapy significantly decrease 28-day mortality? Among patients with septic shock and high endotoxin activity,... read more

Should Pediatric Intensive Care Be Centralized? Trent vs. Victoria

The mortality rate is lower among children admitted to specialist pediatric intensive care units (ICUs) than among those admitted to mixed adult and pediatric units in non-tertiary hospitals. In the UK, however, few children... read more

Adjunct and Rescue Therapies for Refractory Hypoxemia

Prone position, inhaled nitric oxide, high frequency oscillation, extra corporeal life support. The mortality of severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), defined with a PaO2/FiO2 ratio of 100 mmHg... read more

Hydrocortisone plus Fludrocortisone for Adults with Septic Shock

The use of steroids in critically ill patients continues to be controversial. Whilst there are signals for improved cardiovascular parameters, this did not translate to clear mortality benefits. The most recent of these trials... read more

Update on Perioperative Acute Kidney Injury

Acute kidney injury (AKI) in the perioperative period is a common complication and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. A standard definition and staging system for AKI has been developed, incorporating a... read more

ICU Usage for Pneumonia Doubles Length of Hospital Stay

A recently released report using data from the National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS) verifies existing data on the prevalence of pneumonia in hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits and provides the first-ever... read more

New York State Sepsis Reporting Mandate Appears to Improve Care and Reduce Deaths

A New York State requirement that all hospitals report compliance with protocols to treat severe sepsis and septic shock appears to improve care and reduce mortality from one of the most common causes of death in those who... read more

Hospital Variation in Risk-Adjusted Pediatric Sepsis Mortality

Margaret Parker, MD, MCCM, speaks with Stefanie G. Ames, MD, about the article "Hospital Variation in Risk-Adjusted Pediatric Sepsis Mortality," published in the May 2018 issue of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Ames... read more

Epidemiology and Changes in Mortality of Sepsis After the Implementation of Surviving Sepsis Campaign Guidelines

This is a prospective, multicenter, observational study performed during a 5-month period in 2011 in a network of 11 intensive care units (ICUs). We compared our findings with those obtained in the same ICUs in a study conducted... read more

Effect of Early vs Delayed Initiation of RRT on Mortality in Critically Ill Patients With AKI

Among critically ill patients with Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), early Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT) compared with delayed initiation of RRT reduced mortality over the first 90 days. Further multicenter trials of this intervention... read more

Model Improves Prediction of Mortality Risk in ICU Patients

MIT researchers have developed a machine-learning model that groups patients into subpopulations by health status to better predict a patient’s risk of dying during their stay in the ICU. This technique outperforms "global"... read more

3 Notable Leaps in Sepsis Care

Sepsis is deadly, it's expensive, and there are abundant initiatives underway that could lead to earlier detection, lowering costs, and saving lives. In May 2016, the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project and the Agency... read more

Chest Radiography vs. Lung Ultrasound for Identification of ARDS

For the identification of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) using the Berlin definition, both chest radiography and lung ultrasound were equally related to mortality. The Berlin definition using lung ultrasound helped... read more

Early Versus Late Initiation of Renal Replacement Therapy in Critically Ill Patients

Early initiation of renal replacement therapy (RRT) effect on survival and renal recovery of critically ill patients is still uncertain. We aimed to systematically review current evidence comparing outcomes of early versus... read more

Direct Discharge From ICU OK for Some Patients

Discharging patients home directly from the intensive care unit (ICU) is associated with outcomes similar to those seen in patients discharged after a follow-up stay on a hospital ward, the authors of a large, population-based... read more