Chest
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Every country has finite resources that are expended to provide citizens with social "goods," including education, protection, infrastructure, and health care. Rationing-of any resource-refers to distribution of an allotted amount and may involve withholding some goods that would benefit some citizens. ⋯ Academic physicians from England, Spain, Italy, France, Argentina, Canada, and the United States wrote essays that addressed specific questions including: (1) What historical, cultural, and medical institutional features inform my country's approach to rationing of health care? (2) What is known about formal rationing, especially in critical care, in my country? (3) How does rationing occur in my ICU? Responses suggest that critical care is rationed, by varying mechanisms, in all seven countries. We speculate that while no single "best" method of rationing is likely to be acceptable or optimal for all countries, professional societies could serve international health by developing evidence-based guidelines for just and effective rationing of critical care.
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Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) management has become more daunting over the past decade because of alarming increases in CDI incidence and severity both in the hospital and in the community. This increase has concomitantly caused significant escalation of the health-care economic burden caused by CDI, and it will likely be translated to increased ICU admission and attributable mortality. Some possible causes for difficulty in management of CDI are as follows: (1) inability to predict and prevent development of severe/complicated or relapsing CDI in patients who initially present with mild symptoms; (2) lack of a method to determine who would have benefited a priori from initiating vancomycin treatment first instead of treatment with metronidazole; (3) lack of sensitive and specific CDI diagnostics; (4) changing epidemiology of CDI, including the emergence of a hypervirulent, epidemic C difficile strain associated with increased morbidity and mortality; (5) association of certain high-usage nonantimicrobial medications with CDI; and (6) lack of treatment regimens that leave the normal intestinal flora undisturbed while treating the primary infection. The objective of this article is to present current management and prevention guidelines for CDI based on recommendations by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America and Infectious Diseases Society of America and potential new clinical management strategies on the horizon.
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Comparative Study
Changes of health-related quality of life in critically ill octogenarians: a follow-up study.
Intensivists frequently are concerned about whether octogenarians actually will benefit from ICU admission. We studied changes in health-related quality of life (HRQOL) 6 months following ICU discharge in those patients. ⋯ We demonstrated a good recovery of HRQOL in octogenarians surviving critical illness. The findings suggest that denying admission to the ICU should not just rely on old age.
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Comparative Study
Pain is a common problem affecting clinical outcomes in adults with cystic fibrosis.
As the cystic fibrosis (CF) population has aged, many chronic health problems have emerged, including diabetes mellitus and osteoporosis. Previous studies have suggested that pain is common in patients with CF; however, little is known about the factors associated with it or its impact on clinical outcomes. We hypothesized that pain is common, is associated with psychologic distress, and adversely affects clinical outcomes. ⋯ Pain is common in adults with CF, interferes with activities, and is associated with lower QOL and an increased risk of both exacerbations and death.
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Comparative Study
Percutaneous catheter decompression in the treatment of elevated intraabdominal pressure.
Intraabdominal hypertension (IAH) and abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) traditionally have been treated surgically through emergent laparotomy. Intensivist-performed bedside drainage of free intraperitoneal fluid or blood (percutaneous catheter decompression [PCD]) has been advocated as a less-invasive alternative to open abdominal decompression (OAD). ⋯ Intensivist-performed PCD is an effective and less-invasive technique for treating patients with IAH/ACS where free intraperitoneal fluid or blood is present as determined by bedside ultrasonography. Failure to drain at least 1,000 mL of fluid and decrease IAP by at least 9 mm Hg in the first 4 h postdecompression is associated with PCD failure and should prompt urgent OAD.