Results The cohort consisted in 65 patients, their median age was 63 years (52-70), their median Simplified Acute Physiology Score II at admission was 39 (28-54). The large majority of patients had pre-existing diseases, mainly hypertension, diabetes and chronic heart failure. Twenty-seven (41.5%) patients presented with exacerbations of previous underlying disease. Neurological manifestation o...

This study compared clinical outcomes among adult, elderly and very elderly patients admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICUs) located in São Paulo, Brazil. This retrospective, longitudinal and comparative study included 279 adult (≥ 18 and <60 years), 216 elderly (≥ 60 and <80 years) and 105 very elderly (≥ 80 years) patients. Adult patients differed from other groups regarding the unit to which...

INTRODUCTION Only limited information exists on the pharmacokinetics of prolonged (> 24 hours) and high-dose dexmedetomidine infusions in critically ill patients. The aim of this study was to characterize the pharmacokinetics of long dexmedetomidine infusions and to assess the dose linearity of high doses. Additionally, we wanted to quantify for the first time in humans the concentrations of H-...

INTRODUCTION Intensive care is generally regarded as expensive, and as a result beds are limited. This has raised serious questions about rationing when there are insufficient beds for all those referred. However, the evidence for the cost effectiveness of intensive care is weak and the work that does exist usually assumes that those who are not admitted do not survive, which is not always the ...

BACKGROUND Decreased health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is a significant problem after an intensive care stay and is affected by several known factors such as age, sex, and previous health-state. The objective of this study was to assess the association between memory and self-reported perceived HRQoL of patients discharged from the intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS A prospective, multic...

BACKGROUND Scoring models are widely established in the intensive care unit (ICU). However, the importance in patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (RAAA) remains unclear. Our aim was to analyze scoring systems as predictors of survival in patients undergoing open surgical repair (OSR) for RAAA. METHODS This is a retrospective study in critically ill patients in a surgical ICU at a...

BACKGROUND Intensivists and nursing staff are often reluctant to admit patients with cancer to the intensive care unit even though these patients' survival rate has improved since the 1980s. OBJECTIVE To identify factors associated with mortality in cancer patients admitted to the intensive care unit and to assess and compare the effectiveness of 3 general prognostic models: the Acute Physiol...

BACKGROUND The mortality rate in patients with severe liver dysfunction secondary to alcoholic liver disease (ALD) who do not respond to the standard treatment is exceptionally high. OBJECTIVES The main aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of applying extracorporeal liver support techniques to treat this group of patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS The data from 23 hospital admission...

BACKGROUND Metformin-associated lactic acidosis (MALA) is a severe metabolic failure with high related mortality. Although its use is controversial, intermittent hemodialysis is reported to be the most frequently used treatment in conjunction with nonspecific supportive measures. Our aim was to report the evolution and outcome of cases managed by continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). M...

INTRODUCTION The aim of this study was to evaluate factors influencing short- and long-term survival in medical patients aged 80 and over following admission to an intensive care unit. METHODS All patients aged 80 years or over and admitted between 2001 and 2006 were included in this study. Survival was evaluated between the time of admission and June 2009; factors associated with mortality w...