Critical care : the official journal of the Critical Care Forum
-
Comparative Study
Bedside diagnostic laparoscopy to diagnose intraabdominal pathology in the intensive care unit.
Delayed diagnosis of intraabdominal pathology in the intensive care unit (ICU) increases rates of morbidity and mortality. Intraabdominal pathologies are usually identified through presenting symptoms, clinical signs, and laboratory and radiological results; however, these could also delay diagnosis because of inconclusive laboratory tests or imaging results, or the inability to safely transfer a patient to the radiology room. In the current study we evaluated the safety and accuracy of bedside diagnostic laparoscopy to confirm the presence of intraabdominal pathology in an ICU setting. ⋯ Bedside diagnostic laparoscopy represents a safe and accurate technique for diagnosing intraabdominal pathology in an ICU setting and should be taken into consideration when patient transfer to radiology or the operating room is considered unsafe, or when routine radiological examinations are not conclusive enough to reach a definite diagnosis.
-
Knowledge about the influence of current neuroprotective interventions on prognostic markers after survival from cardiac arrest is lacking. This study aimed to investigate the effects of mild therapeutic hypothermia on the release of the astroglial protein S-100 after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. ⋯ Although the predictive power of S-100 levels were best on admission but not at later time points, MTH had no influence on S-100 serum levels in survivors of non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the particular setting of this investigation.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Intensive insulin treatment improves forearm blood flow in critically ill patients: a randomized parallel design clinical trial.
Intensive insulin treatment of critically ill patients was seen as a promising method of treatment, though recent studies showed that reducing the blood glucose level below 6 mmol/l had a detrimental outcome. The mechanisms of the effects of insulin in the critically ill are not completely understood. The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that intensive insulin treatment may influence forearm blood flow independently of global hemodynamic indicators. ⋯ Compared to standard treatment, intensive insulin treatment of critically ill patients increases forearm flow. Flow increase was weakly related to the insulin dose, though not to blood glucose concentration.
-
Comparative Study
Recombinant activated protein C treatment improves tissue perfusion and oxygenation in septic patients measured by near-infrared spectroscopy.
The purpose was to test the hypothesis that muscle perfusion, oxygenation, and microvascular reactivity would improve in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock during treatment with recombinant activated protein C (rh-aPC) (n = 11) and to explore whether these parameters are related to macrohemodynamic indices, metabolic status or Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score. Patients with contraindications to rh-aPC were used as a control group (n = 5). ⋯ Treatment with rh-aPC may improve muscle oxygenation (StO2 baseline) and reperfusion (StO2 upslope) and, furthermore, rh-aPC treatment may increase tissue metabolism (StO2 downslope). NIRS is a simple, real-time, non-invasive technique that could be used to monitor the effects of rh-aPC therapy at microcirculatory level in septic patients.
-
Control of blood glucose (BG) in critically ill patients is considered important, but is difficult to achieve, and often associated with increased risk of hypoglycemia. We examined the use of a computerized insulin dosing algorithm to manage hyperglycemia with particular attention to frequency and conditions surrounding hypoglycemic events. ⋯ Glycemic control to a lower glucose target range can be achieved using a computerized insulin dosing protocol. With particular attention to timely measurement and adjustment of insulin doses the risk of hypoglycemia experienced can be minimized.