Intensive care medicine
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Intensive care medicine · Sep 2002
Comparative StudyA comparison of two mortality risk scores for very low birthweight infants: clinical risk index for babies and Berlin score.
To compare the performance of two mortality risk scores for very low birthweight (VLBW) infants. ⋯ Both scores predicted death in hospital with high accuracy and interhospital reliability. Decreasing mortality in VLBW infants during the past 20 years requires regular reevaluation of existing scoring systems to avoid overestimation of mortality risk.
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Intensive care medicine · Sep 2002
Pulse oximeter-enhanced accuracy of capnometry in children with cyanotic heart disease.
To evaluate the relationship between the arterial end-tidal partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO2) difference (deltapCO2) and the degree of desaturation in children with cyanotic heart disease (CHD) and to come to a more reliable estimation of the arterial carbon dioxide partial pressure (PaCO2) from the end-tidal carbon dioxide partial pressure (PET-CO2). ⋯ Correcting the PET-CO2 for the degree of hypoxia using the SpO2 in artificially ventilated infants and children with CHD results in a clinically applicable estimation of the PaCO2. As both SpO2 and PET-CO2 can be monitored continuously and non-invasively, this could facilitate artificial ventilation management in children with CHD.
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Intensive care medicine · Sep 2002
Comparative StudyComparison of continuous thermodilution and bolus cardiac output measurements in septic shock.
To compare continuous (CCO) and bolus (BCO) thermodilution cardiac output measurement techniques over a wide range of cardiac outputs and blood temperatures in a septic sheep model. ⋯ Thermodilution measurements of CCO are reliable, when compared to BCO measurements, over a large range of cardiac outputs and blood temperatures.
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Intensive care medicine · Sep 2002
Comparative StudyA four-step protocol for limitation of treatment in terminal care. An observational study in 475 intensive care unit patients.
To describe a four-step protocol for withholding and withdrawal of life support (WH/WDLS) in intensive care unit (ICU) terminal patients. ⋯ This four-step protocol may promote medical decision making on end-of-life care.
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Intensive care medicine · Sep 2002
Procalcitonin: a marker to clearly differentiate systemic inflammatory response syndrome and sepsis in the critically ill patient?
To define the role of procalcitonin in the differential diagnosis, prognosis and follow-up of critically ill patients. ⋯ The definite differential diagnosis between SIRS and sepsis may not rely on a single application of procalcitonin but on the complete clinical and laboratory evaluation of the patient with procalcitonin playing a considerable role. Procalcitonin is an early prognostic marker of the advent of MODS; therefore, daily determinations might help in the follow-up of the critically ill patient.