Critical care explorations
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Case Reports
Treatment for Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 With the Seraph-100 Microbind Affinity Blood Filter.
To determine whether Seraph-100 (Exthera Medical Corporation, Martinez, CA) treatment provides clinical benefit for severe coronavirus disease 2019 cases that require mechanical ventilation and vasopressor support.
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Analyze the diagnostic test characteristics of point-of-care lung ultrasound for patients suspected to have novel coronavirus disease 2019. ⋯ Lung ultrasound diagnosed severe presentations of coronavirus disease 2019 with similar sensitivity to chest radiograph, CT, and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (on first testing) and improved specificity compared to chest radiograph. Diagnostically useful lung ultrasound patterns differed from those hypothesized by previous, nonanalytical, reports (case series and expert opinion), and should be evaluated in a rigorous prospective study.
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It is now reported that coronavirus disease 2019 ICU patients are at increased risk of thrombosis. Expert opinion and scientific societies recommend a higher dose of low-molecular-weight heparin, but definitive data is lacking. We report our adapted thromboprophylaxis practice of low-molecular-weight heparin administration in coronavirus disease 2019 ICU patients. ⋯ Despite an adapted protocol, three of the 19 patients (16%) developed venous thromboembolism. We show in coronavirus disease 2019 ICU patients, despite higher prophylactic low-molecular-weight heparin administration due to body mass index, anti-Xa activity was well below peak serum levels in our cohort of critically ill coronavirus disease 2019 patients. This evaluation suggests the need for rapid studies on adequate thromboprophylaxis in these patients.
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The causative agent for coronavirus disease 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, appears exceptional in its virulence and immunopathology. In some patients, the resulting hyperinflammation resembles a cytokine release syndrome. Our knowledge of the immunopathogenesis of coronavirus disease 2019 is evolving and anti-cytokine therapies are under active investigation. This narrative review summarizes existing knowledge of the immune response to coronavirus infection and highlights the current and potential future roles of therapeutic strategies to combat the hyperinflammatory response of patients with coronavirus disease 2019.
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In many countries, large numbers of critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 are admitted to the ICUs within a short period of time, overwhelming usual care capacities. Preparedness and reorganization ahead of the wave to increase ICU surge capacity may be associated with favorable outcome. The purpose of this study was to report our experience in terms of ICU organization and anticipation, as well as reporting patient characteristics, treatment, and outcomes. ⋯ A rapid increase in ICU bed capacity, including adequate equipment and staffing, allowed for a large number of critically ill coronavirus disease 2019 patients to be taken care of within a short period of time. Anticipation and preparedness ahead of the wave may account for the low mortality observed in our center. These results highlight the importance of resources management strategy in the context of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.