Neurocritical care
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To propose a novel definition for hydrocephalus growth and to further describe the association between hydrocephalus growth and poor outcome among patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). ⋯ Hydrocephalus growth is defined by strongly predictive of short- or long-term mortality and poor outcome at 90 days, and might be a potential indicator for assisting clinicians for clinical decision-making.
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The modified Fisher scale (mFS) is a critical clinical and research tool for risk stratification of cerebral vasospasm. As such, the mFS is included as a common data element by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke SAH Working Group. There are few studies assessing the interrater reliability of the mFS. ⋯ Agreement among raters in grading the mFS is only moderate. Online training tools could be developed to improve mFS reliability and standardize research in SAH.
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Clinicians working in intensive care frequently report perceptions of inappropriate care (PIC) situations. Intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is associated with high rates of mortality and morbidity. Prognosticating after ICH is complex and may be influenced by clinicians' subjective impressions and biases, which may, in turn, influence decision making regarding the level of care provided. The aim of this study was to qualitatively explore perceptions of neurocritical care in relation to the expected functional outcome for ICH patients. ⋯ Caring for severely affected ICH patients in need of neurocritical care is challenging, particularly with frail elderly patients. Awareness of the challenges could facilitate interventions to improve decision-making for this group of stroke patients and their families, as well as measures to reduce the distress on clinicians who care for this patient group. Our findings highlight the need for effective interdisciplinary shared decision making involving the family, taking into account patients' previously expressed values and preferences and incorporating these into bespoke care planning.
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Observational Study
High Serum Soluble Fas Ligand Levels in Non-survivor Traumatic Brain Injury Patients.
Soluble Fas Ligand (sFasL) is one of the main ligands that activates the apoptosis extrinsic pathway. Higher expression of FasL in brain samples and higher cerebrospinal fluid FasL concentrations in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients than in controls have been found. However, the potential association between blood sFasL concentrations and TBI mortality has not been reported. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine whether that association exists. ⋯ The association between serum sFasL levels and 30-day mortality in TBI patients was the major novel finding of our study; however, future validation could be interesting to confirm those results.
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Observational Study
Cerebrospinal Fluid Lactate Levels, Brain Lactate Metabolism and Neurologic Outcome in Patients with Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum lactate levels were assessed to predict poor neurologic outcome 3 months after return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). We compared arterio-CSF differences in the lactate (ACDL) levels between two neurologic outcome groups. ⋯ At each time point, CSF lactate showed better prognostic performance than serum lactate. CSF lactate24 showed the highest prognostic performance for 3-month poor neurologic outcome. Over time, ACDL decreased in the poor neurologic outcome group and increased in the good neurologic outcome group.