Crit Care Resusc
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Background: Deceased organ donation work-up typically takes 24 hours or more. Clinicians may thus discount the possibility of donation when the potential donor is physiologically unstable or family requirements do not allow this length of time. This may lead to loss of transplantable organs. ⋯ Of the two lung recipients, one died at day 622 of chronic rejection. Conclusions: Expedited pathway donation is feasible with acceptable donation outcomes. Clinicians should consider donation even when physiological instability or family requirements preclude standard organ donation work-up times.
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Objective: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, baseline demographics and comorbidities of patients with COVID-19 have been presented, but there are limited data on outcomes of severely ill patients. We aimed to examine the association between patient characteristics and 30-day mortality among patients with COVID-19 treated in the intensive care unit (ICU). Design: Population-based cohort study. ⋯ In the multivariable Cox regression model, age (hazard ratio [HR] 1.06; 95% CI, 1.04-1.07 per year), the presence of one or more comorbidities (HR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.20-2.68), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma (HR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.12-2.50), hypertension (HR, 1.41; 95% CI, 1.01-1.99), and acute illness severity (SAPS 3 excluding age and comorbidity) (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.04-1.09) were associated with 30-day mortality. Conclusions: This population-based cohort study presents 30-day mortality of 604 ICU patients with COVID-19. The higher mortality was explained by older age, the presence chronic illness, and acute illness severity.
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Background: Arterial blood gas (ABG) analysis is the most frequently performed test in intensive care units (ICUs), often without a specific clinical indication. This is costly and contributes to iatrogenic anaemia. Objectives: To reduce the number of ABG tests performed and the proportion that are inappropriate. ⋯ The proportion of inappropriate ABG tests decreased by 47.3% (54.2% v 28.6%; P < 0.001) and the number of inappropriate ABG tests per bed-day decreased by 71% (2.8 v 0.8; P < 0.001). Patient outcomes before and after the intervention did not differ (standardised mortality ratio, 0.65 v 0.63; P = 0.22). Conclusion: Staff education and implementation of a clinical guideline resulted in substantial decreases in the number of ABG tests performed and the proportion of inappropriate ABG tests.
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Objective: To test the effectiveness of chewing gum in the prophylaxis of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) after surgery. Design: Prospective, open label, pilot randomised controlled trial. Setting: Two metropolitan ICUs. ⋯ Our findings can inform future studies of PONV prophylaxis in post-surgical ICU patients. Trial registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry No. ACTRN12617001185358.
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Objectives: To report extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) experience at Princess Alexandra and Gold Coast University hospitals and compare mortality with benchmarks. Design: Case series of patients treated with ECMO. Setting: Two adult tertiary Australian intensive care units with low ECMO case volumes. ⋯ Nine deaths were observed in 27 patients with cardiac failure, below the 95% CI (14-23) for the deaths predicted by the SAVE score (P < 0.001), but within the 95% CI (9-17) for the deaths predicted by the SAVE score modified to be consistent with the Alfred Hospital cohort (P > 0.05). Seven deaths were observed in the ten eCPR patients, within the 95% CI (4-10) predicted using the risk of death derived from the ELSO Registry. Conclusions: Mortality in two low volume ECMO centres was not inferior to benchmarks.