Articles: intensive-care-units.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The effectiveness of a brief intervention for intensive care unit patients with hazardous alcohol use: a randomized controlled trial.
Screening for hazardous alcohol use and performing brief interventions (BIs) are recommended to reduce alcohol-related negative health consequences. We aimed to compare the effectiveness (defined as an at least 10% absolute difference) of BI with usual care in reducing alcohol intake in intensive care unit survivors with history of hazardous alcohol use. ⋯ As underpowered, our study cannot reject or confirm the hypothesis that a single BI early after critical illness is effective in reducing the amount of alcohol consumed compared to TAU. However, a considerable number in both groups reduced their alcohol consumption.
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Observational Study
Prognostic values of serum lactate-to-bicarbonate ratio and lactate for predicting 28-day in-hospital mortality in children with dengue shock syndrome.
This study aimed to assess the clinical utility of blood lactate-to-bicarbonate (L/B) ratio, as a prognostic factor for 28-day in-hospital mortality in children with dengue shock syndrome (DSS), admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). This single-center retrospective study was conducted at a tertiary children hospital in southern Vietnam from 2013 to mid-2022. Prognostic models for DSS mortality were developed, using a predefined set of covariates in the first 24 hours of PICU admission. ⋯ Combined with the identified clinical predictors, the L/B ratio yielded higher prognostic values (odds ratio [OR] = 8.66, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.96-38.3; P < .01) than the lactate-based model (OR = 1.35, 95% CI, 1.15-1.58; P < .001). Both the L/B and lactate models showed similarly good performances. Considering that the L/B ratio has a better prognostic value than the lactate model, it may be considered a potential prognostic biomarker in clinical use for predicting 28-day mortality in PICU-admitted children with DSS.
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Background and Objectives: Patients at high altitudes with COVID-19 may experience a decrease in their partial oxygen saturation (PO2S) levels. The objective was to assess the association between PO2S and intensive care unit (ICU) stay in patients at high altitudes with COVID-19. Materials and Methods: Clinical records of 69 COVID-19 patients (36% women) admitted to the ICU were analyzed. ⋯ An increase in PO2S by 1% reduced ICU stay by 0.22 days (β: -0.22 [CI: -0.33, -0.11], p < 0.001), potentially leading to a reduction of up to 1.44 days. Conclusions: PO2S is a crucial factor in estimating ICU stays for COVID-19 patients at high altitudes and serves as an accessible and cost-effective measure. It should be used in infected patients to complement the prognosis of post-pandemic ICU stay.
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While serum Ca has proven to be a reliable predictor of mortality across various diseases, its connection with the clinical outcomes of ischemic stroke (IS) remains inconclusive. Our research aimed to explore the relationships between serum total Ca (tCa) and serum ionized Ca (iCa) and mortality among acute IS (AIS) patients. ⋯ Our findings suggest that serum iCa, rather than tCa, is linked to ischemic stroke prognosis. Both high and low serum iCa levels are associated with poor short-term prognosis, while only low serum iCa is associated with poor long-term prognosis in AIS patients.