A Clinician's Guide to Dosing Analgesics, Anticonvulsants, and Psychotropic Medications in Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) requiring continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is a common complication in critical illness and has a significant impact on pharmacokinetic factors determining drug exposure, including absorption, distribution, transport, metabolism, and clearance. In this review, we provide a practical guide to drug dosing considerations in critically ill patients undergoing CRRT, focusing on the most commonly used analgesic, anticonvulsant, and psychotropic medications in the clinical care of critically ill patients. A literature search was conducted to identify articles in which drug dosing was evaluated in adult patients receiving CRRT between the years 1980 and 2020.

Effects of a Clonidine Taper on Dexmedetomidine Use and Withdrawal in Adult Critically Ill Patients-A Pilot Study.

Objectives: Prolonged use of dexmedetomidine has become increasingly common due to its favorable sedative and anxiolytic properties. Hypersympathetic withdrawal symptoms have been reported with abrupt discontinuation of prolonged dexmedetomidine infusions. Clonidine has been used to transition patients off dexmedetomidine infusions for ICU sedation.

Incidence of Dexmedetomidine Withdrawal in Adult Critically Ill Patients: A Pilot Study.

Unlabelled: To determine the incidence of dexmedetomidine withdrawal in adult critically ill patients.

Design: This was a prospective, observational study of patients from November 2017 to December 2018.

Setting: Medical-surgical, cardiothoracic, and neurosurgical ICUs in a tertiary care hospital.

Comparison of Self-Reported and Behavioral Pain Assessment Tools in Critically Ill Patients.

Background: Self-reported and behavioral pain assessment scales are often used interchangeably in critically ill patients due to fluctuations in mental status. The correlation between scales is not well elucidated. The purpose of this study was to describe the correlation between self-reported and behavioral pain scores in critically ill patients.