Immune status evaluation of patients with chronic heart failure.

Chronic heart failure (CHF) may be considered a state of immune activation and persistent inflammation expressed by increased circulating levels of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. The purpose of the study was to investigate the immune status in patients with CHF compared to normal individuals. We measured serum cytokine levels as well as cytokine production after ex vivo LPS stimulation of whole blood taken from 14 patients with CHF and 14 healthy volunteers.

Respiratory failure: an overview.

Respiratory failure is defined as a failure in gas exchange due to an impaired respiratory system--either pump or lung failure, or both. The hallmark of respiratory failure is impairment in arterial blood gases. This review describes the mechanisms leading to respiratory failure, the indices that can be used to better describe gas exchange abnormalities and the physiologic and clinical consequences of these abnormalities.

Efficacy of CPR in a general, adult ICU.

Aim: To investigate the initial cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) success rate and long term survival in an Intensive care unit (ICU) population.

Patients: All patients with cardiac arrest over a 2-year-period (1999-2000) in a general, adult ICU of a general hospital of Athens.

Methods: Retrospective collection of clinical data concerning patients, CPR characteristics and survival rates.