Prone Position in Intubated, Mechanically Ventilated COVID-19 Patients

During the COVID-19 pandemic, prone position has been widely adopted to treat mechanically ventilated patients with respiratory failure. The majority of patients improved their oxygenation during prone position, most likely... read more

Effects of Ventilatory Rescue Therapies on the Cerebral Oxygenation of COVID-19 Patients

A new study by Masimo published in Critical Care evaluated the impact of a variety of rescue therapies on the systemic and cerebral oxygenation of mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients suffering from acute respiratory... read more

24-Hour Esophageal pH Measurement in Mechanically Ventilated Children

The current study shows high incidence of gastroesophageal reflux on 24-hour esophageal pH-metry in mechanically ventilated children with medical diagnoses. The significance of this finding and its impact on ventilator-associated... read more

Effect of Helmet Noninvasive Ventilation vs. High-Flow Nasal Oxygen in Patients with COVID-19

Among patients with COVID-19 and moderate to severe hypoxemia, treatment with helmet noninvasive ventilation, compared with high-flow nasal oxygen, resulted in no significant difference in the number of days free of respiratory... read more

Early Tracheotomy Shortens ICU Stay and Lowers Risk of VAP

Compared with late tracheotomy, early intervention was associated with lower ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) rates and shorter durations of mechanical ventilation and ICU stay, but not with reduced short-term, all-cause... read more

Ventilator Weaning and Discontinuation Practices for Critically Ill Patients

In this observational study of invasive mechanical ventilation discontinuation in 142 ICUs in Canada, India, the UK, Europe, Australia/New Zealand, and the US from 2013 to 2016, weaning practices varied internationally. Among... read more

The Influence of Airflow Via High-Flow Nasal Cannula on Duration of Laryngeal Vestibule Closure

The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the influence of airflow via high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) on the duration of laryngeal vestibule closure (dLVC) and Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS) scores. 29... read more

Timing of Intubation in Patients With COVID-19

The timing of intubation in hypoxemic patients with COVID-19 has been hotly debated. Early in the pandemic, there was a push to intubate early, driven by the effort to reduce transmission of the virus. With time, high-flow... read more

Body Mass Index and Risk for COVID-19

Obesity* is a recognized risk factor for severe COVID-19, possibly related to chronic inflammation that disrupts immune and thrombogenic responses to pathogens as well as to impaired lung function from excess weight. Obesity... read more

Effect of High-Dose Baclofen on Agitation-Related Events Among Patients With Unhealthy Alcohol Use Receiving Mechanical Ventilation

Among patients with unhealthy alcohol use receiving mechanical ventilation, treatment with high-dose baclofen, compared with placebo, resulted in a statistically significant reduction in agitation-related events. The primary... read more

Chloroquine/Hydroxychloroquine for Treating or Preventing COVID-19 Infection

When given along with azithromycin, hydroxychloroquine increased the risk of any unwanted effects, but made no difference to the risk of serious unwanted effects (1 study; 444 people). Compared with lopinavir plus ritonavir,... read more

Antiviral Drugs in Hospitalised COVID-19 Patients

These remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir, and interferon regimens had little or no effect on hospitalized patients with Covid-19, as indicated by overall mortality, initiation of ventilation, and duration of hospital... read more

Temporal Changes in the Epidemiology, Management, and Outcome from ARDS

The frequency of and outcome from ARDS remained relatively stable between 2002 and 2012. Plateau pressure > 29 cmH2O and driving pressure > 14 cmH2O on the first day of mechanical ventilation but not tidal volume > 8... read more

Physiological dead space and alveolar ventilation in ventilated infants

Prematurely born infants with pulmonary disease have a higher dead space than term controls, which may influence the optimum level during volume-targeted ventilation. A prospective study of mechanically ventilated infants... read more

Innovations in ICU Ventilation

Many centuries ago, Socrates stated that "the secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new." Nowadays, we may relate his quote with the concept of innovation, which is... read more

Haloperidol, Clonidine and Resolution of Delirium in Critically Ill Patients

Haloperidol and clonidine use in delirious ICU patients may be associated with reduced probability of delirium resolution. This finding, however, merits further investigation given inherent limitations of this observational... read more

COVID-19 and VILI: Mechanical Power Measurement

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for a bedside tool for lung mechanics assessment and ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI) monitoring. Mechanical power is a unifying concept including all the components which... read more

Nebulised heparin for patients with or at risk of ARDS

In patients with or at risk of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), nebulised heparin did not improve self-reported performance of daily physical activities, but was well tolerated and exploratory outcomes suggest... read more

Association between the BMI and outcomes of patients resuscitated from OHCA

The body mass index (BMI) was not independently associated with favourable neurologic and survival outcomes of patients surviving from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Nine hospitals were enrolled; finally, 605 patients... read more

Bacterial Superinfection Pneumonia in COVID-19 Respiratory Failure

Severe community-acquired pneumonia secondary to SARS-CoV-2 is a leading cause of death. Current guidelines recommend patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia receive empirical antibiotic therapy for suspected bacterial superinfection,... read more

Pre-hospital critical care management of severe hypoxemia in victims of COVID-19

Patients with Covid-19 and severe hypoxemia may pose a considerable challenge for the pre-hospital emergency medical services. Intubation may be associated with a high risk of complications in these patients and should be... read more

Adverse Events in the ICU During Bed-Bath Procedures

Serious adverse events were observed in one-half of patients and concerned one-fifth of nurses, confirming the need for caution. Further studies are needed to test systematic serious adverse event prevention strategies. The... read more