Impact of Sex on Infection Risk in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease that exhibits considerable diversity in terms of both clinical and immunological manifestations. Since its female-to-male ratio is around 9:1, it is well recognized that systemic lupus erythematosus mostly affects women, especially those of childbearing age. There is a greater susceptibility to infections in adult patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) compared to the general population.

Early noninvasive ventilation in general wards for acute respiratory failure: an international, multicentre, open-label, randomised trial.

Background: The impact of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) managed outside the intensive care unit in patients with early acute respiratory failure remains unclear. We aimed to determine whether adding early NIV prevents the progression to severe respiratory failure.

Methods: In this multinational, randomised, open-label controlled trial, adults with mild acute respiratory failure (arterial oxygen partial pressure/fraction of inspiratory oxygen [Pao/FiO] ratio ≥200) were enrolled across 11 hospitals in Italy, Greece, and Kazakhstan.

Brain Ultrasonography in Critically Ill Septic Patients: A Scoping Review.

Sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE) is linked to high mortality and impaired neurologic outcome. Brain ultrasonography (US) is a non-invasive tool for cerebral monitoring. A scoping review of the literature in three databases was performed to answer if brain perfusion is altered in sepsis, to determine the role of brain US in guiding resuscitation and its ability to predict the outcome.

Basic Lung Ultrasound and Clinical Applications in General Medicine.

Proficiency in basic lung ultrasound is highly recommended for clinicians in general and internal medicine. This article will review and provide guidance for novice users on how to use lung ultrasound in clinical practice, through a pathology-oriented approach. The authors recommend a 12-zone protocol and describe how to perform and apply it in clinical practice while examining patients with clinical suspicion for the following diseases: pleural effusion, heart failure, pneumonia (bacterial and viral), interstitial lung disease, and pneumothorax.