Journal of critical care
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Journal of critical care · Dec 2011
Clinical TrialA change in humidification system can eliminate endotracheal tube occlusion.
Inadequate airway humidification can result in endotracheal tube occlusion. There is evidence that heat and moisture exchangers (HMEs) are more prone to endotracheal tube occlusion than heated humidifiers (HHs) that contain a heated wire circuit. We aimed to compare the incidence of endotracheal tube occlusion while introducing a new dual-heated wire circuit HH in place of an established hydrophobic HME. ⋯ Our study demonstrates that there is a significant increase in the incidence of endotracheal tube occlusion when using a hydrophobic HME compared with an HH and that using a dual-heated wire circuit HH can eliminate endotracheal tube occlusion.
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Journal of critical care · Dec 2011
The use of an electronic medical record based automatic calculation tool to quantify risk of unplanned readmission to the intensive care unit: a validation study.
The aim of this study was to refine and validate an automatic risk of unplanned readmission (Stability and Workload Index for Transfer, or SWIFT) calculator in a prospective cohort of consecutive medical intensive care unit (ICU) patients in a teaching hospital with comprehensive electronic medical records (EMRs). ⋯ The EMR-based automatic tool accurately calculates SWIFT score and can facilitate ICU discharge decisions without the need for manual data collection.
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Journal of critical care · Dec 2011
Multicenter StudyAcute kidney injury in critically ill patients with pandemic influenza A pneumonia 2009 in Korea: a multicenter study.
We assessed the incidence and clinical characteristics of acute kidney injury (AKI) in critically ill patients infected with pandemic influenza A (H1N1) and its effect on clinical outcomes. ⋯ A significant number of patients with H1N1-related critical illness developed AKI within 72 hours of ICU admission, and this early development of AKI was associated with 30-day mortality.
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Journal of critical care · Dec 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialHydrocortisone at stress-associated concentrations helps maintain human heart rate variability during subsequent endotoxin challenge.
We evaluated the differential impact of stress-associated vs high pharmacologic concentrations of hydrocortisone pretreatment on heart rate variability (HRV) during a subsequent systemic inflammatory stimulus. ⋯ Pretreatment with a stress dose of hydrocortisone but not a higher pharmacologic dose maintained a significantly higher ApEn after endotoxin exposure when compared to a placebo. In addition, decreases in ApEn preceded increases in heart rate.
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Journal of critical care · Dec 2011
Multicenter StudyImpact of different types of organ failure on outcome in intensive care unit patients with acute kidney injury.
The aim of this study was to explore the impact of different types of associated organ failure in patients with acute kidney injury (AKI). ⋯ The prognosis of ICU patients with AKI depended on the total number and types of associated failed organ systems. Respiratory failure was the most common associated organ failure, but neurologic and hepatic failures were associated with the worst prognosis.