The American journal of medicine
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Trends in the use of inferior vena cava (IVC) filters in patients with pulmonary embolism (PE) who are stratified according to whether they are stable or unstable (in shock or ventilator dependent) may show where improvements of management could be made according to the best evidence that we now have. ⋯ Mortality is markedly reduced in unstable patients who receive an IVC filter. Despite this, the proportion of unstable patients who receive an IVC filter is decreasing. The largest number of IVC filters continues to be inserted in stable patients, although there is no evidence of a clinically meaningful reduced mortality with IVC filters in stable patients unless age >80 years.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
CA125-Guided Diuretic Treatment Versus Usual Care in Patients With Acute Heart Failure and Renal Dysfunction.
The optimal diuretic treatment strategy for patients with acute heart failure and renal dysfunction remains unclear. Plasma carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA125) is a surrogate of fluid overload and a potentially valuable tool for guiding decongestion therapy. The aim of this study was to determine if a CA125-guided diuretic strategy is superior to usual care in terms of short-term renal function in patients with acute heart failure and renal dysfunction at presentation. ⋯ A CA125-guided diuretic strategy significantly improved eGFR and other renal function parameters at 72 hours in patients with acute heart failure and renal dysfunction.
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We propose a unifying perspective of heart failure in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The reasoning is as follows: cellular responses to fuel overload include dysregulated insulin signaling, impaired mitochondrial respiration, reactive oxygen species formation, and the accumulation of certain metabolites, collectively termed glucolipotoxicity. ⋯ Conversely, restricting fuel supply by means of caloric restriction, surgical intervention, or certain pharmacologic agents will improve cardiac function by restoring metabolic homeostasis. The concept is borne out by clinical interventions, all of which unload the heart from metabolic stress.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Long-Term Courses of Sepsis Survivors: Effects of a Primary Care Management Intervention.
Sepsis survivors face mental and physical sequelae even years after discharge from the intensive care unit. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term courses of sepsis survivors and the effects of a primary care management intervention in sepsis aftercare. ⋯ Twelve months after completion, a primary care management intervention among survivors of sepsis did not improve mental health-related quality of life. Patients in the intervention group showed less posttraumatic stress symptoms.