BACKGROUND Closed endotracheal suctioning during mechanical ventilation is increasingly used, but its impact on ventilator function has not been fully studied. METHODS We evaluated the impact of closed suctioning with 11 critical-care ventilators, during assisted ventilation in pressure-support mode, pressure-assist/control mode, volume-assist/control mode, and during continuous positive airw...

PURPOSE Closed endotracheal suctioning (CES) may impact ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) risk by reducing environmental contamination. In developing countries where resource limitations constrain the provision of optimal bed space for critically ill patients, CES assumes greater importance. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this prospective, open-labeled, randomized controlled trial spanning 10 m...

The endotracheal tube (eTT) is the most common artificial airway used in NICUs. Suctioning of the eTT is imperative to maintain patency and prevent complications. An extensive review of the literature revealed a lack of standardized criteria or guidelines for suctioning the eTT of neonates and infants in the NICU. The purpose of this article is to report the implementation of an evidencebased g...

Aim. This study was aimed at comparing the effects of the open and closed suctioning techniques on the arterial blood gas values in patients undergoing open-heart surgery. Methods. In a clinical trial, we recruited 42 patients after open-heart surgery in an educational hospital. Each patient randomly underwent both open and closed suctioning. ABGs, PaO2, SaO2, PaCO2, were analyzed before and on...

BACKGROUND Premature infants not only feel and understand the pain, but also respond more intensively compared with term infants. Non-pharmacological methods of pain control are suitable to relieve pain in painful procedures. The facilitated tucking position is considered as a non-pharmacological method of pain control in infants; however, its impact on frequent and repeated procedural pain suc...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The Behavioral Pain Scale is a pain assessment tool for uncommunicative and sedated Intensive Care Unit patients. The lack of a Brazilian scale for pain assessment in adults mechanically ventilated justifies the relevance of this study that aimed to validate the Brazilian version of Behavioral Pain Scale as well as to correlate its scores with the records of physiologi...

INTRODUCTION We conducted this prospective randomised cross-over study to evaluate the effect of closed system (CS) versus open system (OS) endotracheal suctioning on heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), respiratory rate (RR), oxygen saturation (SpO2) and electrocardiogram (ECG) rhythm of patients on mechanical ventilation. MATERIALS AND METHODS Fourteen adult patients were randomly...

An unusual case of transient epidermal flushing after median nerve stimulation and endotracheal suctioning in a patient with head injury is described. The mechanisms of transient erythematous skin reactions in a head injured patient are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to compare the level of dyspnoea with and without the use of 5-cc saline instillation prior to endotracheal suctioning of mechanically ventilated adults. A crossover, quasi-experimental design was used. Seventeen alert, mechanically ventilated adults were asked to rank their level of dyspnoea using the vertical visual analogue scale at specific time intervals surro...