Journal of intensive care medicine
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J Intensive Care Med · Apr 2020
Outcomes and Costs of Patients Admitted to the Intensive Care Unit Due to Accidental or Intentional Poisoning.
Acute poisoning represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality, and many of these patients are admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). However, little is known regarding ICU costs of acute poisoning. ⋯ In our cohort, we confirmed the long-held belief that patients admitted to the ICU with a primary diagnosis of poisoning have a lower mortality rate, ICU LOS, and overall cost per ICU admission than nonpoisoned patients. However, poisoned patients still accrue significant daily costs, with the highest costs attributed to xenobiotics with known antidotes, such as acetaminophen, toxic alcohols, and opioids.
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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.