Respiratory medicine
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Respiratory medicine · Jul 2005
Multicenter StudyCosts of the COPD. Differences between intensive care unit and respiratory intermediate care unit.
To assess whether respiratory intermediate care units (RICUs) are cost effective alternatives to intensive care units (ICUs) for patients with exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). ⋯ Our study suggests that some COPD patients, less severe and with pure respiratory failure, could be successfully and less costly treated in RICUs.