Anaesthesiology intensive therapy
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The concept of brain death (BD) was initially described in 1959 and subsequently became widely accepted in the majority of countries. Nevertheless, the diagnostic guidelines for BD markedly differ, especially regarding the apnoea test (AT), a crucial element of clinical BD confirmation. The current basic guidelines recommend preoxygenation rather than disconnection from the ventilator and insertion of an oxygen insufflation catheter into the endotracheal tube. ⋯ Reports concerning the possible pitfalls of AT and confounding situations have inspired attempts to determine the most effective and safe method of AT. The use of CPAP with oxygen supplementation is becoming highly popular. CPAP can be generated in three manners: directly by the ventilator; through the use of a CPAP valve with a reservoir; and through the use of a highly traditional T-piece system with a reservoir bag connected to distal tubing immersed in water.
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Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther · Jan 2015
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of direct intubation and Supraglottic Airway Laryngopharyngeal Tube (S.A.L.T.) for endotracheal intubation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Randomized manikin study.
Airway control is a potentially lifesaving procedure, but intubation by direct laryngoscopy may be difficult. The aim of this study was to assess the success rate of tracheal intubation using the Macintosh laryngoscope and Supraglottic Airway Laryngopharyngeal Tube (S.A.L.T) device. ⋯ Intubation via the S.A.L.T. was more successful than conventional laryngoscopic intubation, regardless of whether chest compressions were interrupted or not.
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Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther · Jan 2015
ReviewTranspulmonary pressure monitoring during mechanical ventilation: a bench-to-bedside review.
Different ventilation strategies have been suggested in the past in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Airway pressure monitoring alone is inadequate to assure optimal ventilatory support in ARDS patients. The assessment of transpulmonary pressure (PTP) can help clinicians to tailor mechanical ventilation to the individual patient needs. ⋯ Knowledge of the real lung distending pressure, i.e. the transpulmonary pressure, has shown to be useful in both controlled and assisted mechanical ventilation. In the latter ventilator modes, Peso measurement allows one to assess a patient's respiratory effort, patient-ventilator asynchrony, intrinsic PEEP and the calculation of work of breathing. Conditions that have an impact on Peso, such as abdominal hypertension, will also be discussed briefly.
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Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther · Jan 2015
ReviewAn overview on fluid resuscitation and resuscitation endpoints in burns: Past, present and future. Part 2 - avoiding complications by using the right endpoints with a new personalized protocolized approach.
While organ hypoperfusion caused by inadequate resuscitation has become rare in clinical practice due to the better understanding of burn shock pathophysiology, there is growing concern that increased morbidity and mortality related to over-resuscitation induced by late 20th century resuscitation strategies based on urine output, is occurring more frequently in burn care. In order to reduce complications related to this concept of "fluid creep", such as respiratory failure and compartment syndromes, efforts should be made to resuscitate with the least amount of fluid to provide adequate organ perfusion. ⋯ Special reference is made to the role of intra-abdominal hypertension in burn care and adjunctive treatments modulating the inflammatory response. Finally, as urine output has been recognized as a poor resuscitation target, a new personalized stepwise resuscitation protocol is suggested which includes targets and endpoints that can be obtained with modern, less invasive hemodynamic monitoring devices like transpulmonary thermodilution.
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Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther · Jan 2015
ReviewInitial resuscitation from severe sepsis: one size does not fit all.
Over recent decades many recommendations for the management of patients with sepsis and septic shock have been published, mainly as the Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) guidelines. In order to use these recommendations at the bedside one must fully understand their limitations, especially with regard to preload assessment, fluid responsiveness and cardiac output. In this review we will discuss the evidence behind the bundles presented by the Surviving Sepsis Campaign and will try to explain why some recommendations may need to be updated. ⋯ The use of functional hemodynamics with stroke volume variation or pulse pressure variation may further help to identify patients who will respond to fluid administration or not. Furthermore, ongoing fluid resuscitation beyond the first 24 hours guided by CVP may lead to futile fluid loading. In patients that do not transgress spontaneously from the Ebb to Flow phase of shock, one should consider (active) de-resuscitation guided by extravascular lung water index measurements.