Medical intensive care unit consults occurring within 48 hours of admission: a prospective study.

Rationale: Critical care consults requested shortly after admission could represent a triage error. This consult process has not been adequately assessed, and data are retrospective relying on discharge diagnoses.

Objectives: The aims of this study were to identify reasons for medical Intensive care unit (MICU) consultations within 48 hours of admission and to detect differences between those accepted and those denied MICU admission.

Finding an alternative diagnosis does not justify increased use of CT-pulmonary angiography.

Background: The increased use of computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) is often justified by finding alternative diagnoses explaining patients' symptoms. However, this has not been rigorously examined.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed CTPA done at our center over an eleven year period (2000 - 2010) in patients with suspected pulmonary embolus (PE).

Association of nesfatin-1 and fat mass in cystic fibrosis.

Background: The mechanisms of fat mass (FM) loss in cystic fibrosis (CF) are poorly understood but could represent complex pathways involving dysregulation of appetite-modulating peptides and an amplified inflammatory response. Nesfatin-1 is a newly described peptide that decreases food intake and FM but has not been studied in CF.

Objectives: We hypothesized that changes in the appetite-suppressing hormone nesfatin-1 would be physiological, and levels would be lower in advanced CF patients with lower FM compared to those with milder disease and healthy controls.