Music therapy, a review of the potential therapeutic benefits for the critically ill.

Intensive care units are a stressful milieu for patients, particularly when under mechanical ventilation which they refer to as inhumane and anxiety producing. Anxiety can impose harmful effects on the course of recovery and overall well-being of the patient. Resulting adverse effects may prolong weaning and recovery time.

Acute Parotitis as a Complication of Noninvasive Ventilation.

Several conditions, including oropharyngeal dryness, pressure sores, ocular irritation, epistaxis, or gastric distension, have been described during noninvasive ventilation (NIV). Although this technique has been widely used in intensive care units and emergency wards, acute swelling of the parotid gland remains a scarcely reported complication. We describe herein the case of an 82-year-old man who developed unilateral parotitis during prolonged NIV for acute heart failure.