American journal of critical care : an official publication, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Clinical comparison of two- and three-wavelength systems for continuous measurement of venous oxygen saturation.
To evaluate clinically the accuracy of continuous SvO2 systems to reflect reference SvO2 values over a 24-hour period. ⋯ The results of this clinical study confirmed a previous study in dogs, showing that SvO2 is measured more accurately by the three-wavelength continuous monitoring system.
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Evaluation of a system for intragastric pH monitoring of intensive care unit patients: preliminary report.
A new pH probe-tipped nasogastric sump tube is available to monitor gastric pH conveniently. This study assesses its ability to measure gastric acidity accurately. ⋯ The GrapHprobe ST measured gastric pH within reasonable accuracy in this small series.
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The intensive care unit is set apart from other hospital patient care areas by (1) physiological instrumentation that permits better assessment and more effective therapy and (2) more intensive nursing. These capabilities allow nurse and physician intensivists to evaluate tissue perfusion and tissue oxygenation by the temporal patterns of oxygen delivery and oxygen consumption, as well as hemodynamics. ⋯ Using artificial intelligence-based systems, complex clinical algorithms--tailored to specific patient conditions--have been developed and are described. These algorithms are based on both invasive and noninvasive monitoring systems and on clinical experience with a large series of high-risk surgical patients.
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Critical care, as a specialty in both nursing and medicine, is well recognized and the number of people requiring hospitalization for critical illnesses continues to increase. The purpose of this paper is to examine the future and the changes that lie ahead in critical care. ⋯ A variety of changes in critical care are anticipated that reflect our increasing abilities in biotechnology, basic and clinical research, and data management. These changes are viewed for their obvious impact on cost, ethical controversies, and patient care and outcome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Room-temperature thermodilution cardiac output: central venous vs right ventricular port.
To assess the accuracy of room-temperature thermodilution cardiac output measurements from the right ventricular port. In addition, waveform patterns were evaluated to determine the actual location of the right ventricular port. ⋯ Thermodilution cardiac output measurements using 10 mL normal saline at room temperature can be determined accurately using the right ventricular port if the central venous port becomes nonfunctional.