Journal of intensive care medicine
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J Intensive Care Med · Mar 2020
Development of a Simple Sequential Organ Failure Assessment Score for Risk Assessment of Emergency Department Patients With Sepsis.
Sepsis-3 recommends using the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score followed by SOFA score for sepsis evaluation. The SOFA is complex and unfamiliar to most emergency physicians, while qSOFA is insensitive for sepsis screening and may result in missed cases of sepsis. The objective of this study was to devise an easy-to-use simple SOFA score for use in the emergency department (ED). ⋯ Simple SOFA demonstrates similar predictive ability for in-hospital mortality from sepsis compared to SOFA. External validation of these findings is indicated.
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J Intensive Care Med · Mar 2020
Observational StudyA Morphological and Quantitative Analysis of Lung CT Scan in Patients With Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and in Cardiogenic Pulmonary Edema.
The acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and cardiogenic pulmonary edema (CPE) are both characterized by an increase in lung edema that can be measured by computed tomography (CT). The aim of this study was to compare possible differences between patients with ARDS and CPE in the morphologic pattern, the aeration, and the amount and distribution of edema within the lung. ⋯ Both ARDS and CPE are characterized by a similar presence of ground-glass attenuation and different airspace consolidation regions. Acute respiratory distress syndrome has a higher amount of not inflated tissue and lower amount of well inflated tissue. However, the overall regional distribution is similar within the lung.
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Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) is a common complication of critical illness and is associated with increased mortality, longer mechanical ventilation and longer hospital stay. Little is known about the causes of mortality in patients with ICU-AW. In this study, we aimed to give an overview of the causes of death in a population diagnosed with ICU-AW during hospital admission. ⋯ In this cohort of patients with ICU-AW, most patients died of irreversible shock with MOF, caused by sepsis.
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J Intensive Care Med · Mar 2020
Use of the Bedside-Placed Angel Catheter IVC Filter for Venous Thromboembolic Disease in Critically Ill Medical Patients.
Venous thromboembolic disease is a major problem among critically ill patients, with significant associated morbidity and mortality. Many critically ill patients have contraindications to systemic anticoagulation, and inferior vena cava (IVC) filters are an important alternative in preventing pulmonary emboli (PE) in this population. The Angel Catheter (Mermaid, Stenlose, Denmark) is a novel percutaneous and removable IVC filter attached to the end of a triple lumen central venous catheter which has been demonstrated to reduce PE in surgical and trauma patients. ⋯ None of the patients had a recurrence of PE during Angel catheter use, 29.4% had clot found in the filter via cavogram upon removal, and only one had a minor complication which had no clinical consequence. In 2 patients, the placement of the Angel Catheter resulted in the prevention of PE during catheter-directed thrombolysis of extensive deep vein thrombosis. This case series demonstrates that in a population of critically ill, elderly, and obese medical patients the bedside placement of the Angel IVC filter is feasible, safe, and may be effective for preventing PE.
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J Intensive Care Med · Mar 2020
Effect of Anemia on Mortality in Mechanically Ventilated Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
The effect of anemia on patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) requiring invasive mechanical ventilation for acute respiratory failure is unknown. ⋯ Critically ill patients with COPD requiring invasive mechanical ventilation for acute respiratory failure without anemia on admission had a better overall survival when compared to those with anemia. No difference was noted in the 90-day mortality. Further studies are needed to determine the impact of the trajectory of hemoglobin on mortality.