Articles: critical-care.
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Langenbecks Arch Chir · Nov 1976
[Hospital infection during postoperative intensive care (author's transl)].
Since 1970 all postoperative bacteriological findings recorded in surgical patients have been analyzed and compared with the postoperative course. There are also regular checks of bacterial invasion in the operating suites and in the intensive care units. By such means as systems of double lock for personnel and equipment, regular surface disinfection, frequent hand disinfection, cleaning of the respirators with antiseptics, etc., the authors have been able to reduce the incidence of hospital infection very drastically. These measures also almost eliminated cross-infections in patients on long-term ventilation and complications with long-term indwelling catheters.
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Optimum results are obtained in the care of the critically ill patient if efforts are directed to maintaining the internal environment in a state as near normal as possible. This cannot be done without the use of basic monitoring procedures. ⋯ There is, however, a real risk of complex procedures becoming an end in themselves in general intensive therapy units, where they are apt to distract overworked nurses and medical attendants from the care of their patients. It is important, therfore, for clearcut indications for various monitoring procedures to be defined, and in this paper an attempt has been made to outline alogical approach to the monitoring of critically ill genral surgical patients admitted intensive therapy units.