Evaluation of Oral Vasoactive Medications to Maintain Mean Arterial Pressure in Spinal Cord Injury.

Introduction: An acute spinal cord injury (SCI) results in significant morbidity worldwide. Guidelines recommend mean arterial pressure (MAP) augmentation to prevent hypoperfusion. Although there is no consensus on a single vasoactive agent for MAP augmentation, intravenous vasopressors are commonly utilized, requiring an intensive care unit (ICU).

Adjusted vs Total Body Weight-Based Dosing of Sedation and Analgesia Used in the Intensive Care Unit.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate if dosing fentanyl, dexmedetomidine, and propofol based on ideal or adjusted vs actual weight in patients would decrease overall opioid and sedative use. This was a retrospective chart review comparing adjusted vs actual weight-based dosing protocol of mechanically ventilated (MV) intensive care unit (ICU) adult patients who required fentanyl and either propofol or dexmedetomidine. A total of 261 patients were included in which 101 patients were in the actual weight group and 160 patients were in the adjusted weight group.

A matched-control evaluation of an antifungal bundle in the intensive care unit at a university teaching hospital.

Background: Antimicrobial use bundles are becoming a common means of implementing antimicrobial stewardship initiatives in the hospital setting. Although the utility of these bundles has been described for many disease states, their adoption for antifungal therapy management is largely unknown.

Objective: Our objective was to assess the utility of an antifungal bundle protocol in limiting excessive use of echinocandins in the intensive-care inpatient setting.

Impact of a Multimodal Antimicrobial Stewardship Program on Pseudomonas aeruginosa Susceptibility and Antimicrobial Use in the Intensive Care Unit Setting.

Objective. To study the impact of our multimodal antibiotic stewardship program on Pseudomonas aeruginosa susceptibility and antibiotic use in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting. Methods.