Critical care : the official journal of the Critical Care Forum
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Prospectively validated predictions of shock and organ failure in individual septic surgical patients: the Systemic Mediator Associated Response Test.
Clinically useful predictions of end-organ function and failure in severe sepsis may be possible through analyzing the interactions among demographics, physiologic parameters, standard laboratory tests, and circulating markers of inflammation. The present study evaluated the ability of such a methodology, the Systemic Mediator Associated Response Test (SMART), to predict the clinical course of septic surgery patients from a database of medical and surgical patients with severe sepsis and/or septic shock. ⋯ SMART multivariate models accurately predict pathophysiology, shock, and organ failure in individual septic surgical patients. These prognostications may facilitate early treatment of end-organ dysfunction in surgical sepsis.
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Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
Respiratory effects of dexmedetomidine in the surgical patient requiring intensive care.
STATEMENT OF The respiratory effects of dexmedetomidine were retrospectively examined in 33 postsurgical patients involved in a randomised, placebo-controlled trial after extubation in the intensive care unit (ICU). Morphine requirements were reduced by over 50% in patients receiving dexmedetomidine. ⋯ Interestingly the arterial partial oxygen tension (PaO2) : fractional inspired oxygen (FIO2) ratios were statistically significantly higher in the dexmedetomidine group. Dexmedetomidine provides important postsurgical analgesia and appears to have no clinically important adverse effects on respiration in the surgical patient who requires intensive care.
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
Helium-oxygen mixture does not improve gas exchange in mechanically ventilated children with bronchiolitis.
STATEMENT OF Varying concentrations of helium-oxygen (heliox) mixtures were evaluated in mechanically ventilated children with bronchiolitis. We hypothesized that, with an increase in the helium:oxygen ratio, and therefore a decrease in gas density, ventilation and oxygenation would improve in children with bronchiolitis. Ten patients, aged 1-9 months, were mechanically ventilated in synchronized intermittent mandatory ventilation (SIMV) mode with the following gas mixtures delivered at 15-min intervals: 50%/50% nitrogen/oxygen, 50%/50% heliox, 60%/40% heliox, 70%/30% heliox, and return to 50%/50% nitrogen/oxygen. The use of different heliox mixtures compared with 50%/50% nitrogen/oxygen in mechanically ventilated children with bronchiolitis did not result in a significant or noticeable decrease in ventilation or oxygenation.
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Comparative Study
Emergency airway management by intensive care unit nurses with the intubating laryngeal mask airway and the laryngeal tube.
When using the laryngeal tube and the intubating laryngeal mask airway (ILMA), the medium-size (maximum volume 1100 ml) versus adult (maximum volume 1500 ml) self-inflating bags resulted in significantly lower lung tidal volumes. No gastric inflation occurred when using both devices with either ventilation bag. The newly developed medium-size self-inflating bag may be an option to further reduce the risk of gastric inflation while maintaining sufficient lung ventilation. Both the ILMA and laryngeal tube proved to be valid alternatives for emergency airway management in the experimental model used.
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To determine the clinical usefulness of immediate (stat) chest radiographs after endotracheal intubation when performed by experienced critical care personnel. ⋯ The incidence of endotracheal tube malposition after intubation was underestimated. However, when performed by experienced critical care personnel, acutely significant malpositions were rare (one out of 101 intubations). We conclude that, in the absence of specific pulmonary complications, endotracheal intubations performed by experienced operators may be followed by routine, rather than 'stat' chest radiographs.