Mechanisms maintaining right ventricular contractility-to-pulmonary arterial elastance ratio in VA ECMO: a retrospective animal data analysis of RV-PA coupling.

Background: To optimize right ventricular-pulmonary coupling during veno-arterial (VA) ECMO weaning, inotropes, vasopressors and/or vasodilators are used to change right ventricular (RV) function (contractility) and pulmonary artery (PA) elastance (afterload). RV-PA coupling is the ratio between right ventricular contractility and pulmonary vascular elastance and as such, is a measure of optimized crosstalk between ventricle and vasculature. Little is known about the physiology of RV-PA coupling during VA ECMO.

Beta-adrenergic blockade increases pulmonary vascular resistance and causes exaggerated hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction at high altitude: a physiological study.

Background: An increasing number of hypertensive persons travel to high altitude (HA) while using antihypertensive medications such as beta-blockers. Nevertheless, while hypoxic exposure initiates an increase in pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), the contribution of the autonomic nervous system is unclear. In animals, beta-adrenergic blockade has induced pulmonary vasoconstriction in normoxia and exaggerated hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) and both effects were abolished by muscarinic blockade.

Effects of enhanced adsorption haemofiltration versus haemoadsorption in severe, refractory septic shock with high levels of endotoxemia: the ENDoX bicentric, randomized, controlled trial.

Background: Endotoxin adsorption is a promising but controversial therapy in severe, refractory septic shock and conflicting results exist on the effective capacity of available devices to reduce circulating endotoxin and inflammatory cytokine levels.

Methods: Multiarm, randomized, controlled trial in two Swiss intensive care units, with a 1:1:1 randomization of patients suffering severe, refractory septic shock with high levels of endotoxemia, defined as an endotoxin activity ≥ 0.6, a vasopressor dependency index ≥ 3, volume resuscitation of at least 30 ml/kg/24 h and at least single organ failure, to a haemoadsorption (Toraymyxin), an enhanced adsorption haemofiltration (oXiris) or a control intervention.

Subjective and objective survival prediction in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients: a prospective cohort study.

Background: ICU risk assessment tools, routinely used for predicting population outcomes, are not recommended for evaluating individual risk. The state of health of single patients is mostly subjectively assessed to inform relatives and presumably to decide on treatment decisions. However, little is known how subjective and objective survival estimates compare.

Effect of high altitude on human postprandial C-octanoate metabolism, intermediary metabolites, gastrointestinal peptides, and visceral perception.

Objective: At high altitude (HA), acute mountain sickness (AMS) is accompanied by neurologic and upper gastrointestinal symptoms (UGS). The primary aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that delayed gastric emptying (GE), assessed by C-octanoate breath testing (OBT), causes UGS in AMS. The secondary aim was to assess post-gastric mechanisms of OBT, which could confound results under these conditions, by determination of intermediary metabolites, gastrointestinal peptides, and basal metabolic rate.

Hypothermia versus Normothermia after Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.

Background: Targeted temperature management is recommended for patients after cardiac arrest, but the supporting evidence is of low certainty.

Methods: In an open-label trial with blinded assessment of outcomes, we randomly assigned 1900 adults with coma who had had an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest of presumed cardiac or unknown cause to undergo targeted hypothermia at 33°C, followed by controlled rewarming, or targeted normothermia with early treatment of fever (body temperature, ≥37.8°C).

A Single 60.000 IU Dose of Erythropoietin Does Not Improve Short-Term Aerobic Exercise Performance in Healthy Subjects: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Crossover Trial.

Erythropoietin (EPO) boosts exercise performance through increase in oxygen transport capacity following regular administration of EPO but preclinical study results suggest that single high dose of EPO also may improve exercise capacity. Twenty-nine healthy subjects (14 males/15 females; age: 25 ± 3 years) were included in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study to assess peak work load and cardiopulmonary variables during submaximal and maximal cycling tests following a single dose of 60.000 IU of recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) or placebo (PLA).

Increased protocol adherence and safety during controlled normothermia as compared to hypothermia after cardiac arrest.

Purpose: This study aims to compare protocol adherence, neurological outcome and adverse effects associated with a controlled hypothermia versus a controlled normothermia protocol in patients successfully resuscitated after cardiac arrest.

Methods: In this retrospective single-center study in a university intensive care unit in Switzerland, post-cardiac arrest patients were compared before and after a protocol change from targeted temperature management at 33 °C (TTM-33) to 36 °C (TTM-36) using an intravascular cooling device. Protocol adherence was assessed as the primary outcome.

Influenza-associated aspergillosis in critically-ill patients-a retrospective bicentric cohort study.

Influenza was recently reported as a risk factor for invasive aspergillosis (IA). We aimed to describe prognostic factors for influenza-associated IA (IAA) and poor outcome and mortality in critically ill patients in Switzerland. All adults with confirmed influenza admitted to the ICU at two Swiss tertiary care centres during the 2017/2018 influenza season were retrospectively evaluated.

First report about a successful ECLS implantation and subsequent helicopter transfer of a super obese patient with a BMI of 78 kg/m.

Our tertiary center provides 24/7 ECMO implantation and transport service nationwide. In 2018, 150 ECLS/ECMO were implanted, and 40 patients were transported on ECLS/ECMO. In this report, we describe a successful veno-arterial ECLS implantation in a super obese (BMI 78 kg/m) 50-year-old female patient at a primary care hospital with subsequent helicopter transfer to our tertiary center.

Temporal trends in in-hospital complications of acute coronary syndromes: Insights from the nationwide AMIS Plus registry.

Background: Acute coronary syndrome (ACS)-related morbidity and mortality remain substantial. Data on temporal trends in in-hospital complications of ACS patients are scarce. This study sought to investigate whether the incidence of in-hospital complications of ACS patients changed over time.

Hemoglobin concentration of young men at residential altitudes between 200 and 2000 m mirrors Switzerland's topography.

There is a Commentary on this article in this issue.

Correction to: Expert statement on the ICU management of patients with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake. The penultimate row of Table 4 shows INR > 1.5 which is incorrect.

Lung-kidney interactions in critically ill patients: consensus report of the Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) 21 Workgroup.

Background: Multi-organ dysfunction in critical illness is common and frequently involves the lungs and kidneys, often requiring organ support such as invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV), renal replacement therapy (RRT) and/or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).

Methods: A consensus conference on the spectrum of lung-kidney interactions in critical illness was held under the auspices of the Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) in Innsbruck, Austria, in June 2018. Through review and critical appraisal of the available evidence, the current state of research, and both clinical and research recommendations were described on the following topics: epidemiology, pathophysiology and strategies to mitigate pulmonary dysfunction among patients with acute kidney injury and/or kidney dysfunction among patients with acute respiratory failure/acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Evaluation of Acute Mountain Sickness by Unsedated Transnasal Esophagogastroduodenoscopy at High Altitude.

Background & Aims: It is not clear how rapid ascent to a high altitude causes the gastrointestinal symptoms of acute mountain sickness (AMS). We assessed the incidence of endoscopic lesions in the upper gastrointestinal tract in healthy mountaineers after a rapid ascent to high altitude, their association with symptoms, and their pathogenic mechanisms.

Methods: In a prospective study, 25 mountaineers (10 women; mean age, 43.

Expert statement on the ICU management of patients with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is fatal in 90% of patients if left untreated and must be diagnosed early to optimize patient outcomes. However, the very low incidence of TTP is an obstacle to the development of evidence-based clinical practice recommendations, and the very wide variability in survival rates across centers may be partly ascribable to differences in management strategies due to insufficient guidance. We therefore developed an expert statement to provide trustworthy guidance about the management of critically ill patients with TTP.

Outcome of inter-hospital transfer of patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in Switzerland.

Aims Of The Study: An extracorporeal membrane oxygenation system (ECMO), as a bridge to either recovery, a ventricular assist device (VAD), or heart or lung transplantation, may be the only lifesaving option for critically ill patients suffering from refractory cardiac, respiratory or combined cardiopulmonary failure. As peripheral hospitals may not offer ECMO treatment, tertiary care centres provide specialised ECMO teams for on-site implantation and subsequent patient transfer on ECMO to the tertiary hospital. This study reports the results of the largest ECMO transportation programme in Switzerland and describes its feasibility and safety.

Recruitment of non-perfused sublingual capillaries increases microcirculatory oxygen extraction capacity throughout ascent to 7126 m.

Key Points: A physiological response to increase microcirculatory oxygen extraction capacity at high altitude is to recruit capillaries. In the present study, we report that high altitude-induced sublingual capillary recruitment is an intrinsic mechanism of the sublingual microcirculation that is independent of changes in cardiac output, arterial blood pressure or systemic vascular hindrance. Using a topical nitroglycerin challenge to the sublingual microcirculation, we show that high altitude-related capillary recruitment is a functional response of the sublingual microcirculation as opposed to an anatomical response associated with angiogenesis.

Twenty-year trends in the characteristic, management and outcome of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and out-of-hospital reanimation. Insight from the national AMIS PLUS registry 1997-2017.

Background: Few studies describe recent changes in the incidence, treatment and outcome of successfully resuscitated STEMI patients after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) compared with non-OHCA STEMI patients.

Objective: To examine temporal trends in the incidence, therapeutic management, most serious complications, mortality rate and outcome of OHCA patients fulfilling criteria of STEMI compared with a reference group of STEMI patients without OHCA.

Methods: Analysis of registry data (AMIS Plus Registry) among STEMI patients both with and without OHCA between 1997 and 2017.

Preserving fertility in an unconscious patient with Goodpasture syndrome-medicolegal and ethical aspects.

Background: Every day in the ICU, legal issues arise while treating sedated, unconscious, and legally incapacitated patients. Whenever a life-saving treatment cannot be discussed in a timely manner with an unconscious patient, doctors are required by law to act according to the substituted judgment standard. However, if it is not survival that is at stake, but conservation of reproduction and the potential side effects are significant, the decision-making process becomes much more difficult.