Critical care medicine
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Critical care medicine · Feb 2014
Review Meta AnalysisMacrolides and Mortality in Critically Ill Patients With Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Some studies suggest better outcomes with macrolide therapy for critically ill patients with community-acquired pneumonia. To further explore this, we performed a systematic review of studies with mortality endpoints that compared macrolide therapy with other regimens in critically ill patients with community-acquired pneumonia. ⋯ In observational studies of almost 10,000 critically ill patients with community-acquired pneumonia, macrolide use was associated with a significant 18% relative (3% absolute) reduction in mortality compared with nonmacrolide therapies. After pooling data from studies that provided adjusted risk estimates, an even larger mortality reduction was observed. These results suggest that macrolides be considered first-line combination treatment in critically ill patients with community-acquired pneumonia and support current guidelines.
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Critical care medicine · Feb 2014
ReviewInhaled Anticoagulation Regimens for the Treatment of Smoke Inhalation-Associated Acute Lung Injury: A Systematic Review.
Inhaled anticoagulation regimens are increasingly being used to manage smoke inhalation-associated acute lung injury. We systematically reviewed published and unpublished preclinical and clinical trial data to elucidate the effects of these regimens on lung injury severity, airway obstruction, ventilation, oxygenation, pulmonary infections, bleeding complications, and survival. ⋯ The high mortality associated with smoke inhalation-associated acute lung injury results from airway damage, mucosal dysfunction, neutrophil infiltration, airway coagulopathy with cast formation, ventilation-perfusion mismatching with shunt, and barotrauma. Inhaled anticoagulation regimens in both preclinical and clinical studies improve survival and decrease morbidity without altering systemic markers of clotting and anticoagulation. In some preclinical and clinical studies, inhaled anticoagulants were associated with a favorable effect on survival. This approach appears sufficiently promising to merit a well-designed prospective study to validate its use in patients with severe smoke inhalation-associated acute lung injury requiring mechanical ventilation.
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Critical care medicine · Feb 2014
The Role of Leptin in the Development of Pulmonary Neutrophilia in Infection and Acute Lung Injury.
One of the hallmarks of severe pneumonia and associated acute lung injury is neutrophil recruitment to the lung. Leptin is thought to be up-regulated in the lung following injury and to exert diverse effects on leukocytes, influencing both chemotaxis and survival. We hypothesized that pulmonary leptin contributes directly to the development of pulmonary neutrophilia during pneumonia and acute lung injury. ⋯ We demonstrate that pulmonary leptin is induced in injured human and murine lungs and that this cytokine is effective in driving alveolar airspace neutrophilia. This action appears to be caused by direct effects of leptin on neutrophils.
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Critical care medicine · Feb 2014
Sepsis Is Associated With Altered Cerebral Microcirculation and Tissue Hypoxia in Experimental Peritonitis.
Alterations in cerebral microvascular blood flow may develop during sepsis, but the consequences of these abnormalities on tissue oxygenation and metabolism are not well defined. We studied the evolution of microvascular blood flow, brain oxygen tension (PbO2), and metabolism in a clinically relevant animal model of septic shock. ⋯ Impaired cerebral microcirculation during sepsis is associated with progressive impairment in PbO2 and brain metabolism. Development of severe hypotension was responsible for a further increase in anaerobic metabolism. These alterations may play an important role in the pathogenesis of brain dysfunction during sepsis.
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Critical care medicine · Feb 2014
Review Meta AnalysisTherapeutic Hypothermia and the Risk of Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Observational studies suggest that infections are a common complication of therapeutic hypothermia. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials to examine the risk of infections in patients treated with hypothermia. ⋯ The available evidence, subject to its limitations, strongly suggests an association between therapeutic hypothermia and the risk of pneumonia and sepsis, whereas no increase in the overall risk of infection was observed. All future randomized trials of hypothermia should report on this important complication.