Intensive care medicine
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Intensive care medicine · Jan 2016
Prospective study of a proactive palliative care rounding intervention in a medical ICU.
To evaluate the effects of a palliative care intervention on clinical and family outcomes, and palliative care processes. ⋯ Proactive palliative care involvement on ICU rounds for high-risk patients was associated with more and earlier ICU family meetings and shorter hospital LOS. We did not identify differences in family satisfaction, family psychological symptoms, or family-rated quality of dying, but had limited power to detect such differences.
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Intensive care medicine · Jan 2016
Apnea test during brain death assessment in mechanically ventilated and ECMO patients.
To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of an apnea test (AT) technique that combines the application of positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) with subsequent pulmonary recruitment in a large cohort of brain-dead patients. ⋯ In a large cohort of consecutive patients, including the largest patient population on ECMO reported to date, our AT technique that combines the application of PEEP with subsequent pulmonary recruitment proved to be feasible and safe.