Intensive care medicine
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Intensive care medicine · Dec 2000
Costs of care, long-term prognosis and quality of life in patients requiring renal replacement therapy during intensive care.
To assess (1) the long-term outcome of patients requiring renal replacement therapy (RRT) in terms of 6-month and 5-year mortality, (2) quality of life and (3) costs of the intensive care. ⋯ There was only a minor increase in mortality after discharge from hospital among patients treated for ARF in intensive care. The costs related to ARF in intensive care are high, but the almost complete physical and functional recovery seen in ARF survivors should be noted in cost-effective analyses.
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Intensive care medicine · Nov 2000
ReviewCoagulation inhibitors in sepsis and disseminated intravascular coagulation.
Sepsis is a syndrome that is increasing in frequency and continues to be associated with an unacceptably high mortality. DIC is an important and common sequel of sepsis, is implicated in the development of multiple organ failure, and has been shown repeatedly to connote a poor prognosis. Increasing understanding of the pathogenesis of DIC has suggested several novel therapies designed to correct deficiencies in inhibitors of coagulation. ⋯ Until more data are available, important questions remain as to its proper place in the treatment of sepsis, septic shock, and DIC. Similarly, therapy with protein C and tissue factor-pathway inhibitor has been beneficial in animal models of sepsis and DIC. The results of controlled clinical trials in humans are eagerly awaited.