The role of statin drugs in the reduction of serum lipids has been well documented. More recently we have evidences which suggest that statins may positively impact many organ systems and disease states independent of lipid reduction. These have added a wide scope of potential targets for statin therapy ranging from plaque stabilization in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) to decreasing loss of ren...

This book is a comprehensive review of critical care medicine with a unique orientation to serve as a study guide. The format and presentation promote the educational objective while the use of study questions in each chapter should improve both understanding and retention of material. Unlike many books that cover such a broad topic as critical care medicine, this book was produced by diverse f...

Endocrine aspects of critical care have been a major focus of both clinical and basic science research in the past several years. It is becoming increasingly evident that the neuroendocrine response is both a mediator and a modulator of a variety of conditions afflicting the critically ill patient, such as sepsis, trauma, and surgery. Critical care endocrinology encompasses a multitude of disea...

Sedative and analgesic medications used for mechanically ventilated (MV) patients in intensive care units (ICU) can promote adverse consequences, including prolonged MV and ICU length of stay, ventilator-acquired pneumonia, and ICU-related delirium. Various strategies to minimize these effects have been examined including sedation-based analgesia and daily interruption of sedation. Physical mob...

Critical care transport (CCT) is the segment of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system that transports patients who are critically ill or injured. Nearly 1,000 medical helicopters affiliated with over 300 transport programs, hundreds of fixed-wing aircraft, and many, many ground ambulances assisting adult, pediatric and neonatal CCT teams are operating in the United States.1 This article r...

The specialty of trauma/critical care is relatively new and is currently in a state of evolution as we now face not only a shortage of surgeons but also an alarmingly increasing number of well-trained surgeons who are unwilling to provide emergency care. Regionalization of both trauma and emergency surgical care nationwide is on the horizon and will require major changes in our surgical trainin...

Critical care services are atypical in the wide heterogeneity of their patients. This is in part a reflection of the way in which these services have evolved. The progress of intensive care in the UK has been described as ‘haphazard’, consisting of ‘largely unplanned and unevaluated’ developments that occurred in reaction to changes in surgical and medical practice. There has been debate about ...

Critical Care Medicine www.ccmjournal.org 2773 Objectives: To determine the rate of unplanned PICU readmissions, examine the characteristics of index admissions associated with readmission, and compare outcomes of readmissions versus index admissions. Design: Retrospective cohort analysis. Setting: Ninety North American PICUs that participated in the Virtual Pediatric Intensive Care Unit System...

Critical Care Medicine www.ccmjournal.org 565 C andida is the third most common agent responsible for healthcare-associated bloodstream infections and is the most common agent responsible for invasive fungal infections in children (1, 2). Candidemia is associated with a high mortality and morbidity among hospitalized patients as well as high healthcare costs (3). Prevalence of candidemia has dr...