Medizinische Klinik, Intensivmedizin und Notfallmedizin
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Med Klin Intensivmed Notfmed · Jun 2018
Review[Extracorporeal renal replacement therapy in acute kidney injury : Recommendations from the renal section of the DGIIN, ÖGIAIN and DIVI].
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. The incidence of AKI in ICU patients exceeds 50% and the associated morbidity and mortality rates increase with severity of AKI. In addition, long-term consequences of AKI are underestimated and several studies show impaired long-term outcome after AKI. In about 5-25% of ICU patients with AKI renal replacement therapy (RRT) is required. ⋯ Today, different treatment modalities for RRT are available. Although continuous RRT and intermittent dialysis therapy as well as continuous dialysis therapy have comparable outcomes, differences exist with respect to practical application as well as health-economic aspects. Individualized risk stratification might be helpful to choose the right time to start and the right treatment modality for patients.
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Med Klin Intensivmed Notfmed · May 2018
Review[Geriatric intensive care patients : Perspectives and limits of geriatric intensive care medicine].
Critically ill geriatric patients are vitally endangered due to the aging processes of organs, the frequently existing multimorbidity with subsequent polypharmacy and the typical geriatric syndrome of functional impairments. Aging processes in organs lower the clinical threshold for organ dysfunction and organ failure. ⋯ The main reasons for changes in therapeutic targets are the will of the patient and risk-benefit considerations. The guidelines of the ethics section of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (DIVI) provide assistance and suggestions for a structured decision-making process.
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Med Klin Intensivmed Notfmed · Mar 2018
Review[Therapeutic drug monitoring and individual dosing of antibiotics during sepsis : Modern or just "trendy"?]
Pharmacokinetic variability of anti-infective drugs due to pathophysiological changes by severe sepsis and septic shock is a well-known problem for critically ill patients resulting in suboptimal serum and most likely tissue concentrations of these agents. To cover a wide range of potential pathogens, high concentrations of broad spectrum anti-infectives have to reach the site of infection. Microbiological susceptibility testing (susceptible, intermediate, resistant) don't take the pharmacokinetic variability into account and are based on data generated by non-critically ill patients. ⋯ In the case of known minimal inhibitory concentration, PK/PD indices (time or peak concentration dependent activity) and measured serum level can provide an optimal target concentration for the individual drug and patient. Modern anti-infective management for ICU patients includes more than the choice of drug and prompt application. Individual dosing, optimized prolonged infusion time and TDM give way to new and promising opportunities in infection control.
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Med Klin Intensivmed Notfmed · Feb 2018
ReviewIndications for extracorporeal support: why do we need the results of the EOLIA trial?
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a severe lung disease, with an associated mortality rate exceeding 60% for the most severe forms of the disease. In these situations, establishing an extracorporeal circuit, combining a centrifugal pump and a membrane oxygenator (extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation, ECMO), can ensure total pulmonary assistance and allow the lungs to rest under ultraprotective mechanical ventilation. Unfortunately, former trials of ECMO in ARDS were negative or highly criticized due to many technical and methodological shortcomings. ⋯ Therefore, the international multicenter randomized EOLIA (ECMO to rescue Lung Injury in severe ARDS) trial was designed to test the benefit of systematic and early installation of the latest-generation ECMO circuits in patients with very severe ARDS. Patients randomized to the control group were managed with tight control of mechanical ventilation and recourse to paralyzing agents and prone positioning, while an ethical crossover option to ECMO was permitted only if refractory hypoxemia (SaO2 < 80%) lasted for > 6 h despite all possible conventional emergency interventions. The primary endpoint of the study was the 60-day mortality rate, with an expected 20% absolute mortality reduction with ECMO.
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Esophageal manometry has traditionally been utilized for respiratory physiology research, but clinicians have recently found numerous applications within the intensive care unit. Esophageal pressure (PEs) is a surrogate for pleural pressures (PPl), and the difference between airway pressure (PAO) and PEs provides a good estimate for the pressure across the lung also known as the transpulmonary pressure (PL). Differentiating the effects of mechanical ventilation and spontaneous breathing on the respiratory system, chest wall, and across the lung allows for improved personalization in clinical decision making. ⋯ Intrinsic PEEP (auto-PEEP) may be monitored using esophageal manometry, which may also improve patient comfort and synchrony with the ventilator. Finally, during weaning, PEs may be used to better predict weaning success and allow for rapid intervention during failure. Improved consistency in definition and terminology and further outcomes research is needed to encourage more widespread adoption; however, with clear clinical benefit and increased ease of use, it appears time to reintroduce basic physiology into personalized ventilator management in the intensive care unit.