Chest
-
Comparative Study
Usefulness of cardiothoracic chest ultrasound in the management of acute respiratory failure in critical care practice.
This study investigated the clinical relevance of early general chest ultrasonography (ie, heart and lung recordings) in patients in the ICU with acute respiratory failure (ARF). ⋯ The use of cardiothoracic ultrasound appears to be an attractive complementary diagnostic tool and seems able to contribute to an early therapeutic decision based on reproducible physiopathologic data.
-
Airway remodeling comprises the structural changes of airway walls, induced by repeated injury and repair processes. It is characterized by the changes of tissue, cellular, and molecular composition, affecting airway smooth muscle, epithelium, blood vessels, and extracellular matrix. It occurs in patients with chronic inflammatory airway diseases such as asthma, COPD, bronchiectasis, and cystic fibrosis. ⋯ Current therapeutics can ameliorate inflammation, but there is no available therapy proven to prevent or reverse airway remodeling, although reversibility of airway remodeling is suggested by studies in animal models of disease. Airway remodeling is often considered the result of longstanding airway inflammation, but it may be present to an equivalent degree in the airways of children with asthma, raising the necessity for early and specific therapeutic interventions. In this review, we consider the factors that may contribute to airway remodeling and discuss the current and potential therapeutic interventions.
-
The Resource-Based Relative Value Scale (RBRVS) is fundamentally undermined by the following foundational errors: (1) The full range of office-based evaluation and management (E/M) activities are not captured by the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code choices, (2) it places relatively high values on procedural services, (3) there is no measure of intensity for complex outpatient E/M care, and (4) its maintenance and update have been delegated to select professional societies. Limitations imposed on the development of the RBRVS dating back to the early 1980s have not been corrected. The repertoire of codes for physician office-based E/M work must be expanded to create a new topology of choices with new outpatient code families with discrete service code levels, such as comprehensive outpatient consultation care, comprehensive outpatient primary care, and limited outpatient consultation care. Service code relative values must be based on representative samples and reliable survey data, draw from the broader literature on work intensity, and be developed with accountable and representative professional engagement.
-
Rhabdomyolysis is a well-known clinical syndrome of muscle injury associated with myoglobinuria, electrolyte abnormalities, and often acute kidney injury (AKI). The pathophysiology involves injury to the myocyte membrane and/or altered energy production that results in increased intracellular calcium concentrations and initiation of destructive processes. Myoglobin has been identified as the primary muscle constituent contributing to renal damage in rhabdomyolysis. ⋯ There is little evidence other than from animal studies, retrospective observational studies, and case series to support the routine use of bicarbonate-containing fluids, mannitol, and loop diuretics. Hyperkalemia and compartment syndrome are additional complications of rhabdomyolysis that must be treated effectively. A definite need exists for well-designed prospective studies to determine the optimal management of rhabdomyolysis.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Sex-Dependent Impact of OSA on Digital Vascular Function.
Indexes of associations between OSA and impaired vascular function are mainly based on small, clinic-based studies of conduit artery function in men with severe sleep apnea. Larger population-based studies show no independent associations or associations in women only. Sex differences in OSA-related mortality may exist, and sex differences in vascular function in subjects with OSA need to be explored. We, therefore, assessed whether OSA is associated with digital vascular function in a large population-based sample and whether this association is influenced by sex. ⋯ In a large population-based sample of middle-aged subjects, OSA was independently associated with impaired digital vascular function in women only.