Articles: critical-illness.
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Zhonghua Wai Ke Za Zhi · Jan 1995
[Evaluation of the prognosis of critically ill surgical patients by APACHE II score system].
A prospective trial was conducted in 386 critically ill surgical patients, the APACHE II score was used to quantify the severity of illness and to judge the outcome. Admission APACHE II score of these patients averaged 15.6 +/- 5.4, the mortality rates rose from 1.9% to 100% when the APACHE II score increased from 0 to 38. The score was closely correlated with the subsequent risk of hospital death for these patients (r = 0.75 P < 0.001). Critically ill surgical patients would be well served by APACHE II for quality assurance or outcome.
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Critical illness creates stress in patients and their families. However, families' reactions vary and suggest that having a loved one in an intensive care unit (ICU) may not be a crisis for all families. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the meanings that families ascribe to an ICU experience. ⋯ Interviews were analyzed qualitatively and revealed five categories of meanings that the ICU experience had for families: "it could go either way," "everything is good," "going upstairs," "like living on a roller-coaster," and "there is no hope." All eight families described an initial period of uncertainty during which they were unsure whether the patient would survive. The subsequent trajectory of critical illness followed one of two paths: positive or negative. The results of this study are of interest to nurses who seek to broaden their understanding of the impact of critical illness on the family.
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Critical care medicine · Dec 1994
Comparative Study Retracted PublicationIs continuous cardiac output measurement using thermodilution reliable in the critically ill patient?
Evaluation of continuous cardiac output monitoring based on the thermodilution technique in the critically ill. ⋯ Continuous monitoring of cardiac output using a modified pulmonary artery catheter with a heated filament has proven to be accurate and precise in the critically ill patient when compared with the "standard" intermittent bolus thermodilution technique. The continuous monitoring technique enhances our armamentarium for more intensive monitoring of these patients under a variety of circumstances.