Intensive care medicine
-
Intensive care medicine · Feb 2022
ReviewRandomised clinical trials in critical care: past, present and future.
Randomised clinical trials (RCTs) are the gold standard for providing unbiased evidence of intervention effects. Here, we provide an overview of the history of RCTs and discuss the major challenges and limitations of current critical care RCTs, including overly optimistic effect sizes; unnuanced conclusions based on dichotomization of results; limited focus on patient-centred outcomes other than mortality; lack of flexibility and ability to adapt, increasing the risk of inconclusive results and limiting knowledge gains before trial completion; and inefficiency due to lack of re-use of trial infrastructure. We discuss recent developments in critical care RCTs and novel methods that may provide solutions to some of these challenges, including a research programme approach (consecutive, complementary studies of multiple types rather than individual, independent studies), and novel design and analysis methods. ⋯ We outline the advantages and discuss the potential methodological and practical disadvantages with these approaches. With this review, we aim to inform clinicians and researchers about conventional and novel RCTs, including the rationale for choosing one or the other methodological approach based on a thorough discussion of pros and cons. Importantly, the most central feature remains the randomisation, which provides unparalleled restriction of confounding compared to non-randomised designs by reducing confounding to chance.
-
Intensive care medicine · Feb 2022
ReviewCurrent practice and evolving concepts in septic shock resuscitation.
Clinical and pathophysiological understanding of septic shock has progressed exponentially in the previous decades, translating into a steady decrease in septic shock-related morbidity and mortality. Even though large randomized, controlled trials have addressed fundamental aspects of septic shock resuscitation, many questions still exist. In this review, we will describe the current standards of septic shock resuscitation, but the emphasis will be placed on evolving concepts in different domains such as clinical resuscitation targets, adequate use of fluids and vasoactive drugs, refractory shock, and the use of extracorporeal therapies. Multiple research opportunities remain open, and collaborative endeavors should be performed to fill in these gaps.
-
Intensive care medicine · Feb 2022
Bleeding and thrombotic events in adults supported with venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: an ELSO registry analysis.
This study aimed at analyzing the prevalence, mortality association, and risk factors for bleeding and thrombosis events (BTEs) among adults supported with venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO). ⋯ Although decreasing over time, BTEs remain common during VV-ECMO and have a strong, cumulative association with in-hospital mortality. Thrombotic events are more frequent, but bleeding carries a higher risk of inpatient mortality. Differential risk factors for bleeding and thrombotic complications exist, raising the possibility of a tailored approach to VV-ECMO management.