Journal of critical care
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Journal of critical care · Feb 2025
Observational StudyQuadriceps Muscle Layer Thickness and its association with frailty in critically ill patients: A prospective observational study.
Frailty is a well-recognized clinical entity known to influence the outcomes of critically ill patients. Muscle ultrasound, particularly Quadriceps Muscle Layer Thickness (QMLT), assesses muscle mass, which is a key component determining frailty. However, no studies have assessed the association between frailty and QMLT. This study aimed to determine the association between the QMLT and frailty in critically ill elderly patients. ⋯ We found an independent association between Quadriceps Muscle Layer Thickness (QMLT) and frailty. QMLT decreased progressively with CFS scores. Frail patients with lower QMLT had increased 28-day mortality. These findings highlight the role of incorporating QMLT measurements along with CFS in frailty evaluations to improve decision-making in critically ill elderly patients.
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Journal of critical care · Feb 2025
Postoperative oliguria after intermediate and high-risk surgeries in critical care, A cohort analysis.
Oliguria is commonly used as a cutoff for acute kidney injury (AKI), however, a decrease in urine output is common during surgery and may represent an adaptative response in the perioperative setting rather than a reduction in glomerular filtration rate, leading to a possible overestimation of postoperative AKI incidence. Although this dilemma has been addressed in the intraoperative scenario, the incidence and impact of oliguria in the first postoperative day represents a gap in the current literature. Our main goal is to describe the incidence, risk factors and clinical outcomes related to postoperative oliguria. ⋯ Postoperative oliguria is common after intermediate and high-risk surgical procedures and increases the risk of AKI. However, oliguria was largely unrelated with kidney disfunction measured by serum creatinine (87,6 %), raising doubts on whether diuresis overestimates AKI incidence in the postoperative setting.
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Journal of critical care · Feb 2025
Multicenter Study Observational StudyClinical phenotyping of septic shock with latent profile analysis: A retrospective multicenter study.
Septic shock (SS) is a highly fatal and heterogeneous syndrome. Identifying distinct clinical phenotypes provides valuable insights into the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms and may help to propose precise clinical management strategies. ⋯ The individualized identification of phenotypes is well suited to clinical practice. The three SS phenotypes differed significantly in pathophysiological and clinical outcomes, which are crucial for informing management decisions and prognosis.
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Journal of critical care · Feb 2025
Multicenter StudyIntensivists' ethical perceptions about decisions to withhold or withdraw treatment: A clinical ethics empirical investigation.
Intensive care professional societies have issued policy recommendations regarding decisions to withhold and/or withdraw treatment (Wh&Wd) that consistently classify them as ethically equivalent and ethically neutral. However, on the ground they are often perceived as "active" and morally problematic. Moreover, recent studies have highlighted personal "variability" in the way such decisions are made. Therefore, it seemed necessary to explore intensivists' different ethical perceptions about Wh&Wd decisions. ⋯ The study results allow for recognition of intensivists' moral distress about Wh&Wd decisions and open new perspectives to deal with their deep-rooted variability, most notably by working on the rationale and format of the collegial decision-making procedure.