Crit Care Sci
November 2023
Echocardiography in critically ill patients has become essential in the evaluation of patients in different settings, such as the hospital. However, unlike for other matters related to the care of these patients, there are still no recommendations from national medical societies on the subject. The objective of this document was to organize and make available expert consensus opinions that may help to better incorporate echocardiography in the evaluation of critically ill patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCrit Care Sci
March 2023
The use of echocardiography by physicians who are not echocardiographers has become common throughout the world across highly diverse settings where the care of acutely ill patients is provided. Echocardiographic evaluation performed in a point-of-care manner can provide relevant information regarding the mechanism of causes of shock, for example, increasing the rates of correct diagnosis and allowing for faster informed decision-making than through evaluation methods. Considering that the accurate diagnosis of life-threatening situations is essential for professionals working with acutely ill patients, several international associations recommend that physicians responsible for critically ill patients acquire and develop the ability to perform bedside ultrasound examinations, including echocardiographic examinations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: COVID-19 pandemic caused increased workload and stress for health professionals involved in the care of such patients. We aimed to describe the health-related quality of life, and burnout in frontline physicians diagnosed with anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted during the first-wave phase of COVID-19, from September to October 2020.
Introduction: Delirium is a frequent form of acute brain dysfunction in critically ill patients, and several detection tools for it have been developed for use in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The objective of this study is to evaluate the current evidence on the accuracy of the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) and the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist (ICDSC) for the diagnosis of delirium in critically ill patients.
Methods: A systematic review was conducted to identify articles on the evaluation of the CAM-ICU and the ICDSC in ICU patients.
Objectives: The objectives of this study are to compare the sensitivity and specificity of three diagnostic tools for delirium (the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist, the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units and the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units Flowsheet) in a mixed population of critically ill patients, and to validate the Brazilian Portuguese Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units.
Methods: The study was conducted in four intensive care units in Brazil. Patients were screened for delirium by a psychiatrist or neurologist using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.