Ten misconceptions regarding decision-making in critical care.

Diagnostic errors are prevalent in critical care practice and are associated with patient harm and costs for providers and the healthcare system. Patient complexity, illness severity, and the urgency in initiating proper treatment all contribute to decision-making errors. Clinician-related factors such as fatigue, cognitive overload, and inexperience further interfere with effective decision-making.

Preprocedural fasting policies for patients receiving tube feeding: A national survey.

Background: Patients who are critically ill frequently accrue substantial nutrition deficits due to multiple episodes of prolonged fasting prior to procedures. Existing literature suggests that, for most patients receiving tube feeding, the aspiration risk is low. Yet, national and international guidelines do not address fasting times for tube feeding, promoting uncertainty regarding optimal preprocedural fasting practice.

Perioperative Handoff Enhancement Opportunities Through Technology and Artificial Intelligence: A Narrative Review.

Background: Perioperative handoffs occur as patients progress through preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative phases of care. These may occur between clinicians from the same or different role groups, between different care units, for brief breaks during the course of a surgery, or at shift or service changes. Perioperative handoffs occur during a period of increased vulnerability, as teams must convey critical information at a time of high cognitive load, with many potential distractions.

Molecular mechanisms of muscular and non-muscular actions of neuromuscular blocking agents in critical illness: a narrative review.

Despite frequent use of neuromuscular blocking agents in critical illness, changes in neuromuscular transmission with critical illness are not well appreciated. Recent studies have provided greater insights into the molecular mechanisms for beneficial muscular effects and non-muscular anti-inflammatory properties of neuromuscular blocking agents. This narrative review summarises the normal structure and function of the neuromuscular junction and its transformation to a 'denervation-like' state in critical illness, the underlying cause of aberrant neuromuscular blocking agent pharmacology.