American journal of critical care : an official publication, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Animal-assisted therapy in patients hospitalized with heart failure.
Animal-assisted therapy improves physiological and psychosocial variables in healthy and hypertensive patients. ⋯ Animal-assisted therapy improves cardiopulmonary pressures, neurohormone levels, and anxiety in patients hospitalized with heart failure.
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Blood glucose control during acute illness has been associated with improved outcomes. ⋯ Protocol adherence was positively associated with daily time in the target range, but efficacy during the total protocol implementation time remained poor. Because of the frequency of hypoglycemia, protocols to maintain blood glucose levels between 81 and 110 mg/dL in critically ill patients may not be recommended.
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Responsibilities of critical care nurses for management of mechanical ventilation may differ among countries. Organizational interventions, including weaning protocols, may have a variable impact in settings that differ in nursing autonomy and interdisciplinary collaboration. ⋯ In this unit, critical care nurses have high levels of responsibility for, and autonomy in, the management of mechanical ventilation and weaning. Revalidation of protocols for ventilation practices in other clinical contexts may be needed.