Articles: critical-care.
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Early and efficient management of severely burned patients facilitates outcome improvement. Pre-hospital care includes fluid loading with 2 mL.kg-1/% burn over the first six hours, sedation and analgesia, prevention of hypothermia and ventilatory support for either critically burned patients or facial, cervical or pulmonary burn injury. The transient stay in a general hospital before transfer to a burn centre allows extension of initial care, the critical investigation for associated injuries (intoxication, multiple trauma) and to perform initial local treatment with sterile coverage or vaseline gauze after a revised assessment of the burned skin area, and possibly escharotomies. ⋯ Finally, chemical or electrical burn, radiation, associated CO intoxication or multiple trauma, as well as burn injury in infants, raise specific problems. With improvement in early intensive care, the survival rate of the most severely burned patients is obviously improving. New techniques in skin substitution will probably further improve the final outcome.
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The leading cause of acute neuromuscular weakness in the developed world is Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Mortality rates vary widely. This article discusses the care and management of patients with GBS, with an emphasis on those patients who require admission to an intensive care unit.
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Langenbecks Arch Chir Suppl Kongressbd · Jan 1997
Review[Treatment of increased intracranial pressure in craniocerebral trauma].
The management of trauma patients with increased intracranial pressure is based on maintaining a normal "milieu interne", i.e. avoiding posttraumatic hypoxia and hypotension and applying specific treatment modalities, if indicated. If there are clinical signs of increased intracranial pressure or signs of cerebral edema in the CT scan, monitoring of intracranial pressure is indicated. ICP above 20 mmHg should be treated and the cerebral perfusion pressure should be maintained between 60 and 70 mmHg. Accepted treatment modalities of increased ICP are: 1) analgosedation, 2) head elevation, 3) hyperventilation, 4) osmotherapy, 5) barbiturate therapy, and 6) THAM (tris puffer).
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Revista médica de Panamá · Jan 1997
Comparative Study[Factors involved in the survival and mortality of intensive care patients in Panama].
Biotechnology has been important for the management of the critical ill patients. Today the treatment is expensive and even more with complications, this work has the purpose to find out about mortality and survival and the associated factors that could promote alterations in the outcome. ⋯ We concluded that there is a high mortality related to the septic syndrome. Prevention to avoid the septic syndrome, is the best way to lower the high cost in the intensive care units.
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Critical care clinics · Jan 1997
ReviewNutritional management of the critically ill neurologic patient.
To summarize, the event of severe neurologic injury results in significant metabolic changes. These changes cause increased requirements for protein and nonprotein calories, micronutrients, and small bowel feedings or TPN. Early feeding has been shown to improve survival. ⋯ Provide 40% to 70% above basal needs as total calories, with 30% to 40% of calories as lipid to minimize hyperglycemia. Provide protein as small peptides to improve tolerance, absorption, utilization, and gut integrity. Provide a lipid source with 50% to 70% medium-chain triglycerides and an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of 2:1 to 8:1 to minimize negative effects of omega-6 fatty acids and provide an easily absorbed and utilized source of lipid.