Airway injury from the presence of endotracheal tubes and the association with subglottic secretion drainage: a prospective observational study.

Purpose: Laryngeal and tracheal injuries are known complications of endotracheal intubation. Endotracheal tubes (ETTs) with subglottic suction devices (SSDs) are commonly used in the critical care setting. There is concern that herniation of tissue into the suction port of these devices may lead to tracheal injury resulting in serious clinical consequences such as tracheal stenosis.

Measuring physician cognitive load: validity evidence for a physiologic and a psychometric tool.

In general, researchers attempt to quantify cognitive load using physiologic and psychometric measures. Although the construct measured by both of these metrics is thought to represent overall cognitive load, there is a paucity of studies that compares these techniques to one another. The authors compared data obtained from one physiologic tool (pupillometry) to one psychometric tool (Paas scale) to explore whether they actually measured the construct of cognitive load as purported.

Herpes Simplex Virus Hepatitis in an Immunocompetent Adult: A Fatal Outcome due to Liver Failure.

Objective. To present a case of a healthy 41-year-old female who developed fulminant hepatic failure leading to death. The cause of hepatic failure identified on postmortem exam was herpes simplex virus hepatitis.

Airbag pneumonitis: a report and discussion of a new clinical entity.

This report describes the occurrence of pneumonitis in a young male immediately after inhalation of aerosolized chemicals subsequent to motor vehicle airbag deployment. The clinical presentation was one of mild shortness of breath associated with bilateral alveolar infiltrates on chest radiology. Not previously described, this diagnosis should be considered in the differential of pulmonary infiltrates in motor vehicle crash patients.

Lateral canthotomy and cantholysis: a simple, vision-saving procedure.

Lateral canthotomy and cantholysis is a simple procedure that can be performed by emergency physicians. It has the potential to save vision, particularly in cases of blunt ocular trauma. The case of a 37-year-old man with blunt ocular trauma, a retrobulbar hemorrhage and rapidly increasing orbital pressure requiring an urgent lateral canthotomy and cantholysis is presented.

Administration of recombinant factor VIIa decreases blood loss after blunt trauma in noncoagulopathic pigs.

Background: Activated factor VII catalyzes the activation of clotting factors IX and X within the clotting cascade, and has been used clinically to decrease bleeding in patients with hemophilia and other bleeding disorders. Studies suggest the use of recombinant VIIa (rVIIa) may decrease bleeding after injury in the presence of a coagulopathy, but there is conflicting evidence regarding its use in the absence of coagulopathy. This study was performed to determine whether a single dose of rVIIa would reduce blood loss in noncoagulopathic pigs after blunt trauma.

Colorimetric carbon dioxide detector to determine accidental tracheal feeding tube placement.

Purpose: To determine the accuracy of colorimetric CO2 detection compared to the reference standard two-step radiological confirmation of feeding tube position.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted with patients presenting to a 21-bed medical-surgical intensive care unit. An adapter was developed using an endotracheal tube adapter to connect a colorimetric CO2 detector to a feeding tube in an airtight manner.