[Fungal colonization and/or infection in intensive care units. Multicenter study of 1,562 patients].

Background And Objective: Our objective was to assess the frequency of fungal colonization and/or infection in critically ill patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) and to describe the characteristics and risk factors of those patients in whom fungi had been isolated.

Patients And Method: Observational, multicenter study of patients admitted to 64 ICUs on March 23, June 22, and November 16, 1999. In these patients, the presence of fungi was investigated in some biological sample from the day of ICU admission to the day of assessment of fungal infection.

[Medical decisions in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

Background: A right information about illness is essential if a patient has to take ethically autonomous medical decisions. We assessed whether a group o patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) had enough information about their illness to take medical decisions.

Patients And Method: Structured interview about disease knowledge, wills to receive medical information and to take part in medical lesions as well as opinion on advance directives.