Neurocritical care
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Acute amnesia can be caused by medication effect, transient global amnesia, ischemia, metabolic abnormalities, and seizures. ⋯ Ischemia in the posterior circulation should be considered in the differential diagnosis of TGA, especially in situations predisposing to thromboembolism such as coiling.
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Comparative Study
Causes and outcomes of persistent vegetative state in a Chinese versus American referral hospital.
To compare the etiologies and clinical outcomes of patients in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) between a Chinese and US referral hospital. ⋯ There may be a long survival period for patients with PVS, including in China where resource constraints exist for acute neurologic care. Stroke appears to be the most common underlying cause of PVS in Chinese patients, followed closely by cardiac arrest with attempted CPR. There appear to be more varied causes of PVS in the US referral hospital with a predominance of stroke, cardiac arrest, and traumatic brain injury.
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Comparative Study
Safety of a DVT chemoprophylaxis protocol following traumatic brain injury: a single center quality improvement initiative.
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a complication that affects approximately 30 % of moderate and severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients when pharmacologic prophylaxis is not used. Following TBI, specifically in the case of contusions, the safety and efficacy of pharmacologic thromboembolism prophylaxis (PTP) has been studied only in small sample sizes. In this study, we attempt to assess the safety and efficacy of a PTP protocol for TBI patients, as a quality improvement (QI) initiative, in the neuroscience intensive care unit (NSICU). ⋯ A PTP protocol in the NSICU is useful in controlling the number of complications from DVT and pulmonary embolism while avoiding additional IH. This protocol, based on a published body of literature, allowed for VTE rates similar to published rates, while having no PTP-related hemorrhage expansion. The protocol significantly changed physician behavior, increasing the percentage of patients receiving PTP during their hospitalization; whether long-term patient outcomes are affected is a potential goal for future study.
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Detecting and treating elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) is a cornerstone of management in patients with severe traumatic brain injury. The aim of this study was to determine the association between area under the curve measurement of elevated ICP and clinical outcome. ⋯ These results suggest that pressure time dose measurement of intracranial pressure may be used to predict outcome in severe traumatic brain injury and may be a candidate biomarker in this disease.