Neurocritical care
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Comment Multicenter Study
Beneficial Effect of Pretreatment Hyperosmolality on Outcome in Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: Evidence from a South Korean Multicenter Registry and Propensity Score Matching Analysis.
Hyperosmolar therapy has long been a cornerstone in managing increased intracranial pressure and improving outcomes in severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). This therapy hinges on elevating serum osmolality, creating an osmotic gradient that draws excess water from the brain's cellular and interstitial compartments and effectively reducing cerebral edema. Given this information, we hypothesized that the serum hyperosmolality prior to any treatment could significantly impact the clinical outcomes of patients with severe TBI, potentially mitigating secondary cerebral edema after trauma. ⋯ The present study has uncovered a significant correlation between the pretreatment serum osmolality and the clinical outcomes of patients with severe TBI. These findings offer a novel perspective, indicating that a serum hyperosmolality prior to any treatment might potentially have a neuroprotective effect in patients with severe TBI.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Efficacy and Safety of Early Treatment with Glibenclamide in Patients with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
This study aims to investigate the efficacy and safety of glibenclamide treatment in patients with acute aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). ⋯ Treating patients with early aSAH with oral glibenclamide did not decrease levels of serum NSE and S100B and did not improve the poor 90-day neurological outcome. In the intervention group, there was a visible decreasing trend in cases of delayed cerebral ischemia, but no statistically significant difference was observed. The incidence of hypoglycemia did not differ significantly between the two groups.
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Health disparities continue to plague racial and ethnic underserved patients in the United States. Disparities extend to the most critically ill patients, including those experiencing neurologic injury and patients at the end of life. Achieving health equity in palliative care in the neurointensive care unit requires clinicians to acknowledge and address structural racism and the social determinants of health. This article highlights racial and ethnic disparities in neurocritical care and palliative care and offers recommendations for an anti-racist approach to palliative care in the neurointensive care unit for clinicians.
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Comment Multicenter Study
Early Versus Late Initiation of Endovascular Therapy in Patients with Severe Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis.
Endovascular therapy (EVT) for severe cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is controversial in terms of indication and clinical benefit. The impact of delay of EVT on functional recovery is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of early versus late initiation of EVT in severe CVST. ⋯ We observed a higher rate of functional independence in patients with early EVT. These preliminary findings must be confirmed in subsequent randomized controlled trials evaluating a "time-is-brain" paradigm for EVT in CVST.
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Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO2) is generally known to influence outcome in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) at normal altitudes. Less is known about specific relationships of PaCO2 levels and clinical outcomes at high altitudes. ⋯ Higher PaCO2 levels are associated with an unfavorable outcome in ventilated patients with TBI. These results underscore the importance of PaCO2 levels in patients with TBI and whether it should be adjusted for populations living at higher altitudes.