Journal of critical care
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Journal of critical care · Oct 2021
ReviewThe burden they bear: A scoping review of physician empathy in the intensive care unit.
Research shows that physician empathy can improve patients' reporting of symptoms, participation in care, compliance, and satisfaction; however, success in harnessing these advantages in the ICU hinges on a myriad of contextual factors. This study describes the current state of knowledge about intensivists' empathy. ⋯ Empathy among intensivists is not a dichotomous phenomenon. It instead exists on continua. Four steps are recommended for optimizing empathy in the ICU: clearly defining empathy, addressing risks and benefits transparently, providing education regarding reflective practice, and developing supportive environments. Overall, this review revealed that the state of knowledge about empathy as experienced by intensivists still has room to grow and be further explored.
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Journal of critical care · Oct 2021
Transferring home to die from critical care units: A scoping review of international practices.
To identify and characterise the international practices of transferring a dying patient home to die from critical care units. ⋯ Transferring patients home to die from critical care is a complex practice varying significantly across countries. Further research to address current knowledge gaps is important to inform policy and practice.
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Journal of critical care · Oct 2021
Observational StudyEarly neuro-prognostication with the Patient State Index and suppression ratio in post-cardiac arrest patients.
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines recommend multimodal neuro-prognostication after cardiac arrest using neurological examination, electroencephalography, biomarkers, and brain imaging. The Patient State Index (PSI) and suppression ratio (SR) represent the depth and degree of sedation, respectively. We evaluated the predictive ability of PSI and SR for neuro-prognostication of post-cardiac arrest patients who underwent targeted temperature management. ⋯ The PSI and SR are good predictors for early neuro-prognostication in post-cardiac arrest patients.
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Journal of critical care · Oct 2021
Definition and incidence of hypotension in intensive care unit patients, an international survey of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine.
Although hypotension in ICU patients is associated with adverse outcome, currently used definitions are unknown and no universally accepted definition exists. ⋯ An absolute MAP threshold of 65 mmHg is most frequently used to define hypotension in ICU patients. In neuro(trauma) patients a higher threshold was reported. The majority of ICU patients are estimated to endure hypotension during their ICU admission for a considerable amount of time, with nurses reporting a higher estimated incidence and time spent in hypotension than physicians.