Journal of critical care
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Journal of critical care · Jun 2016
Outcomes of patients with severe sepsis after the first 6 hours of resuscitation at a regional referral hospital in Uganda.
The optimal resuscitation strategy for patients with severe sepsis in resource-limited settings is unknown. Therefore, we determined the association between intravenous fluids, changes in vital signs and lactate after the first 6 hours of resuscitation from severe sepsis, and in-hospital mortality at a hospital in Uganda. ⋯ In patients with severe sepsis in Uganda, obtundation and wasting were more closely associated with in-hospital mortality than lactate clearance of 10% or greater.
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Journal of critical care · Jun 2016
The predictive performance of the SAPS II and SAPS 3 scoring systems: A retrospective analysis.
The purpose was to analyze and compare the performance of Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS) II and SAPS 3 (North Europe Logit) in an intensive care unit (ICU) for internal disorders at a German university hospital. ⋯ In this study, SAPS 3 overestimated mortality and therefore appears less suitable for risk evaluation in comparison to SAPS II.
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Journal of critical care · Jun 2016
A high-volume trauma intensive care unit can be successfully staffed by advanced practitioners at night.
It remains unknown whether critically ill trauma patients can be successfully managed by advanced practitioners (APs). The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of night coverage by APs in a high-volume trauma intensive care unit (ICU) on patient outcomes and care processes. ⋯ Our data suggest that, with adequate supervision, a high-volume trauma ICU can be safely staffed by APs overnight.
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Journal of critical care · Jun 2016
Detecting central-venous oxygen desaturation without a central-venous catheter: Utility of the difference between invasively and noninvasively measured blood pressure.
The objective was to determine whether central-venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2<70%) can be detected from the difference between invasively and noninvasively measured systolic blood pressure (BP) (ie, ΔBP defined as arterial BP minus noninvasive BP). ⋯ ΔBP can indicate whether ScvO2 is lower than 70%. When that difference is greater than 0, ScvO2 is very likely to be lower than 70%.
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Journal of critical care · Jun 2016
Effect of theophylline on ventilator-induced diaphragmatic dysfunction.
To evaluate the effect of theophylline in patients with ventilator-induced diaphragmatic dysfunction (VIDD). ⋯ Theophylline significantly improved diaphragmatic movements in patients with VIDD. Our results warrant a larger study to determine whether theophylline use has benefits during weaning from mechanical ventilation.