Journal of intensive care medicine
-
J Intensive Care Med · Jul 2007
ReviewComplications of emergency tracheal intubation: immediate airway-related consequences: part II.
Airway management in the stable, elective operating room patient is typically exceptionally safe. Conversely, the acute deterioration of an intensive care unit or floor patient being rescued by a clinician unfamiliar with the patient's past and current history combined with an incomplete physical examination places the critically ill patient in a precarious, potentially life-threatening position. ⋯ Consequences of airway management should be openly discussed as a first step toward improving airway safety. This is the second of 2 reviews, "Complications of Emergency Tracheal Intubation," and focuses on the immediate airway-related consequences during emergency tracheal intubation in the remote location.
-
J Intensive Care Med · Jul 2007
ReviewLumbar puncture and brain herniation in acute bacterial meningitis: a review.
There has been controversy regarding the risk of cerebral herniation caused by a lumbar puncture (LP) in acute bacterial meningitis (ABM). This review discusses in detail the issues involved in this controversy. Cerebral herniation occurs in about 5% of patients with ABM, accounting for about 30% of the mortality. ⋯ Some of these clinical signs to be considered are deteriorating level of consciousness (particularly to a Glasgow Coma Scale of