Lactate clearance goal in sepsis
Previous work in severe sepsis/septic shock patients has shown that a decrease in lactate concentration by at least 10% during […]
Acute Med, All Updates, ICU, Resus
ICU
Stuff relevant to patients on ICU
All Updates, ICU
Chlorhexidine-alcohol surgical site prep
In contrast to the situation with skin preparation for intravascular catheters, there have been no recommendations for surgical practice. A […]
All Updates, ICU, Resus
Noradrenaline vs Dopamine in Shock
Another nail in dopamine’s coffin? In a blinded randomised controlled trial in shocked patients1, there was no difference in mortality […]
All Updates, ICU, Resus
Supraclavicular approach to subclavian vein
A series of subclavian vein catheterisations is described in patients using the supraclavicular approach, with a high success rate and […]
All Updates, ICU, Kids, Resus
Some causes of a raised lactate
A high serum lactate does not necessarily mean a bad prognosis: it all depends on the cause. I made this […]
Acute Med, All Updates, Guidelines, ICU, Resus
Subarachnoid haemorrhage guidelines
Guidelines on Subarachnoid Haemorrhage are available from the American Heart Association / American Stroke Association. Most of the summaries are […]
All Updates, Guidelines, ICU
Standards for Capnography in Critical Care
The Intensive Care Society has published guidelines on the use of capnography in critical care. The recommendations are: Capnography should […]
All Updates, ICU, Resus
ScvO2 in sepsis: high is bad too
ScvO2 values are obtained by measuring the oxygen saturation in venous blood returning to the heart, and reflect the balance […]
All Updates, ICU, Resus
Therapeutic hypothermia with simple measures
Thirty-eight post-cardiac arrest patients were effectively cooled to the target temperature range of 32-34 celsius using intravenous cold saline and […]
All Updates, Guidelines, ICU
Updated Nutrition Guidelines
The Canadian Clinical Practice Guidelines for nutrition in the critically ill patient were updated in 2009 and the summary can […]