Is there a role for melatonin in the ICU?

South Afr J Crit Care

Department of Critical Care, Faculty of Health Sciences, Steve Biko Academic Hospital, University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Published: August 2021

Summary: In the last decade, there have been significant developments in the understanding of the hormone melatonin in terms of its physiology, regulatory role and potential utility in various domains of clinical medicine. Melatonin's purported properties include, among others, regulation of mitochondrial function, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and neuro-protective effects, sleep promotion and immune enhancement. As such, its role has been explored specifically in the critical care setting in terms of many of these properties. This review addresses the physiological basis for considering melatonin in the critical care setting as well as the current evidence pertaining to its potential utility.

Contributions Of The Study: This review examines and discusses the role of melatonin in the intensive care unit in terms of sleep, delirium and sepsis, both the physiology and as a therapy.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9045507PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.7196/SAJCC.2021.v37i2.490DOI Listing

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