Journal of intensive care
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Journal of intensive care · Jan 2016
ReviewDiurnal variation in the performance of rapid response systems: the role of critical care services-a review article.
The type of medical review before an adverse event influences patient outcome. Delays in the up-transfer of patients requiring intensive care are associated with higher mortality rates. Timely detection and response to a deteriorating patient constitute an important function of the rapid response system (RRS). ⋯ For example, there is an association between disrupted circadian rhythms and abnormal vital parameters such as anomalous blood pressure, irregular pulse rate, aberrant endothelial function, myocardial infarction, stroke, sleep-disordered breathing and its long-term consequences of hypertension, heart failure and cognitive impairment. Therefore, diurnal variation in patient outcomes may be extrinsic, and more easily modifiable, or related to the circadian variation inherent in human physiology. Importantly, diurnal variations in the implementation and performance of the RRS, as gauged by ALF, the RRT response to clinical deterioration and any variations in quality and quantity of patient monitoring have not been fully explored across a diverse group of hospitals.
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Journal of intensive care · Jan 2016
Unmeasured anions and mortality in critically ill patients in 2016.
The presence of acid-base disturbances, especially metabolic acidosis may negatively affect the outcome of critically ill patients. Lactic acidosis is the most frequent etiology and has largest impact on the prognosis. Since lactate measurement might not have always been available at bedside, it had been regarded as one of the unmeasured anions. ⋯ Then, lactate became routinely measurable at bedside and the direct comparison between directly measured lactate and these surrogate parameters can be possible. Currently available evidence suggests that directly measured lactate has larger prognostic ability for mortality than albumin-corrected anion gap and strong ion gap without lactate. In this commentary, the rationale and possible clinical implications of these findings are discussed.