Chest
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The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected stroke care worldwide. Data from low- and middle-income countries are limited. ⋯ Hospital outcomes of stroke admissions worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, interrupting a trend of improvements in survival rates over 10 years. This effect was more pronounced during the surge of COVID-19 ICU admissions affecting predominantly patients with ischemic stroke without coma, and young patients with hemorrhagic stroke.
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Multicenter Study
Ventilatory Parameters in Obstetric Patients with COVID-19 and Impact of Delivery: A Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study.
Current evidence on obstetric patients requiring advanced ventilatory support and impact of delivery on ventilatory parameters is retrospective, scarce, and controversial. ⋯ Contrary to expectations, pregnant patient lung mechanics were similar to those of the general population with COVID-19 in the ICU. Delivery was induced mainly for maternal reasons, but did not change ventilatory parameters other than Pao2 to Fio2 ratio. SOFA24 score was the only risk factor for IMV. Maternal mortality was associated independently with BMI and comorbidities. Risk factors for fetal and neonatal mortality were SOFA24 score and gestational age at delivery.
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Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Corticosteroids may be a beneficial adjunct in the treatment of bacterial pneumonia. ⋯ Corticosteroid therapy is associated with a lower incidence of progression to requiring mechanical ventilation among patients hospitalized with CAP. No association was found between corticosteroid therapy and mortality, treatment failure, or adverse events.
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Chest radiography (CXR) continues to be the most frequently performed imaging examination worldwide, yet it remains prone to frequent errors in interpretation. These pose potential adverse consequences to patients and are a leading motivation for medical malpractice lawsuits. ⋯ The medicolegal implications of such errors are explained. Awareness of commonly missed CXR findings, their causes, and their consequences are important in developing approaches to reduce and mitigate these errors.
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The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) considers blood eosinophil counts < 100 cells/μL (BEC≤100) in people with COPD to predict poor inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) responsiveness. However, the BEC≤100 phenotype is inadequately characterized, especially in advanced COPD. ⋯ gov.