Search Tag: ICU
PCT-guided antibiotic treatment improves outcomes in sepsis patients
2018 22 Aug
Procalcitonin (PCT)-guided antibiotic treatment in ICU patients with infection and sepsis patients results in improved survival and reduced antibiotic treatment duration, according to results of a new meta-analysis published in the journal Critical Care. Early identification of sepsis and appropriate initial management including the start of... Read more
Improving the long-term outcomes after critical illness
2018 22 Aug
Heterogeneity in studies of survivors of critical illness limits knowledge of outcomes in this patient population. Conceptual models of outcomes developed in other fields can be used to better understand outcomes after critical illness, says Nathan E. Brummel, MD, MSCI, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Center for Quality... Read more
Personalised care to improve glycaemic control in critically ill patients
2018 08 Aug
Hyperglycaemia is prevalent in critical care, caused by a complex interaction of multiple feedback loops associated with inflammation as a result of immune responses, counter-regulatory responses, and high blood glucose itself. However, glycaemic control (GC) currently leads to increased hypoglycaemia, independently associated with a greater risk... Read more
Machine learning algorithm 'more accurate' in predicting ICU readmission
2018 06 Jun
New research shows that a machine learning approach to predicting ICU readmission was significantly more accurate than previously published algorithms or prediction tools. Implementation of this approach could target patients who may benefit from additional time in the ICU or more frequent monitoring after transfer to the hospital ward, according... Read more
Pre-ICU
2018 01 Jun
What happens before patients arrive in the ICU? We know that status pre-ICU is associated with outcomes after patients leave the ICU. We also know that we want patients to come to the ICU only if it is needed. This ties in to having an adequate emergency medicine system and innovative techniques in trauma as well as monitoring hospital patients... Read more
Automated system detects risk of ventilator-associated pneumonia
2018 23 May
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have developed an automated system for identifying patients at risk for complications associated with the use of mechanical ventilators. The new system uses an algorithm that has been shown to be 100 percent accurate in identifying at-risk patients when provided with necessary data, according... Read more
ISICEM18: What you need to know about ICU cost control
2018 27 Mar
Controlling ICU costs requires good interdisciplinary communication and optimised resource allocation and use. It does not mean that patient outcomes will be compromised. Taking on budgeting can be daunting, but there are key points to bear in mind, according to Jukka Takala, professor of Intensive Care Medicine in the University of Bern, Switzerland,... Read more
Should “empiric” antibiotic therapy be considered old-fashioned?
2018 26 Mar
The Surviving Sepsis Campaign recommends starting empiric broad-spectrum antibiotics in the initial management of patients with severe sepsis and septic shock (Rhodes et al. 2017). As a consequence, many patients receive unnecessary antibiotics, exposing them to adverse events, while others might be undertreated in spite of broad-spectrum therapy... Read more
Caring for critically ill immunocompromised patients
2018 16 Mar
We can do better! Élie Azoulay, MD, PhD, is Professor of Medicine in Specialty Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care at Saint Louis Teaching Hospital and Université Paris Diderot in France. He is the Director of the medical intensive care unit (ICU). He leads the French programme for the care of critically ill immunocompromised patients, and is... Read more
Supervised machine learning predicts CLABSI
2018 06 Mar
Machine learning has proven to be useful for developing prediction models for outcomes in intensive care unit patients. A new study comparing machine learning techniques for predicting central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) shows supervised artificial intelligence can accurately predict CLABSI in patients admitted to the ICU. Early... Read more