J Trauma
-
Comparative Study
Postinjury vagal nerve stimulation protects against intestinal epithelial barrier breakdown.
Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) can have a marked anti-inflammatory effect. We have previously shown that preinjury VNS prevented intestinal barrier breakdown and preserved epithelial tight junction protein expression. However, a pretreatment model has little clinical relevance for the care of the trauma patient. Therefore, we postulated that VNS conducted postinjury would also have a similar protective effect on maintaining gut epithelial barrier integrity. ⋯ Postinjury VNS prevents gut epithelial breakdown when performed within 90 minutes of thermal injury. This could represent a therapeutic window and clinically relevant strategy to prevent systemic inflammatory response distant organ injury after trauma.
-
Comparative Study Controlled Clinical Trial
Mortality and regional oxygen saturation index in septic shock patients: a pilot study.
Peripheral muscle tissue oxygenation determined noninvasively using near-infrared spectroscopy may help to identify tissue hypoperfusion in septic patients. The aim of this study was to investigate regional oxygen saturation index (rSO2) in the brachioradialis (forearm) muscle by comparing measurements in healthy subjects and in intensive care unit (ICU) septic shock patients, and determine whether brachioradialis muscle rSO2 is associated with poor outcome in ICU septic shock patients. ⋯ We observed that septic shock patients with forearm skeletal muscle rSO2≤60% throughout first 24 hours after ICU admission had significantly greater mortality rate than patients with forearm skeletal muscle rSO2>60% throughout this critical time.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Removing a patient from the spine board: is the lift and slide safer than the log roll?
After spine board immobilization of the trauma victim and transport to the hospital, the patient is removed from the spine board as soon as practical. Current Advanced Trauma Life Support's recommendations are to log roll the patient 90 degrees, remove the spine board, inspect and palpate the back, and then log roll back to supine position. There are several publications showing unacceptable motion in an unstable spine when log rolling. ⋯ Spine boards can be removed using a lift-and-slide maneuver with less motion and potentially less risk to the patient's long-term neurologic function than expected using the log roll.