Current opinion in critical care
-
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication in critically ill patients. Understanding the pathophysiology of AKI is essential to guide patient management. Imaging techniques that inform the pathogenesis of AKI in critically ill patients are urgently needed, in both research and ultimately clinical settings. Renal contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) and multiparametric MRI appear to be the most promising imaging techniques for exploring the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in AKI. ⋯ CEUS and multiparametric renal MRI are promising imaging techniques but more evidence is needed to show how they can first be more widely used in a research setting to test key hypotheses about the pathophysiology and recovery of AKI, and then ultimately be adopted in clinical practice to guide patient management.
-
Curr Opin Crit Care · Dec 2020
ReviewRefractory cardiac arrest: where extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation fits.
Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) is a powerful technique increasingly used to care for patients with refractory cardiac arrest. This review will detail where ECPR fits in the current care of cardiac arrest patients, including the key aspects of ECPR deployment and patient selection shown to maximize its benefit. ⋯ ECPR is a system of resuscitation care that must be optimized at every level to successfully treat patients with refractory cardiac arrest.
-
This article reviews the current evidence supporting the use of precision medicine in the delivery of acute renal replacement therapy (RRT) to critically ill patients, focusing on timing, solute control, anticoagulation and technologic innovation. ⋯ RRT has become a complex treatment for critically ill patients, which allows for the prescription to be precisely tailored to the different clinical requirements.
-
Curr Opin Crit Care · Dec 2020
ReviewPoint-of-care cardiac ultrasound during cardiac arrest: a reliable tool for termination of resuscitation?
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is commonly used during cardiac arrest to screen for potential causes and to inform termination of resuscitation. However, unique biases and limitations in diagnostic and prognostic test accuracy studies lead to potential for misinterpretation. The present review highlights recent evidence regarding POCUS in cardiac arrest, guides the incorporation of POCUS into clinical management, and outlines how to improve the certainty of evidence. ⋯ POCUS findings might indicate a particular diagnosis or encourage the continuation of resuscitation, but absence of the same is not sufficient in isolation to exclude a particular diagnosis or cease resuscitation. Until the evidence to support POCUS during cardiac arrest is more certain, it is best characterized as a diagnostic and prognostic adjunct.