Year in review 2005: Critical Care – resource management

During 2005 Critical Care published several original papers dealing with resource management. Emphasis was placed on sepsis, especially the coagulation cascade, prognosis and resuscitation. The papers highlighted important aspects of the pathophysiology of coagulation and inflammation in sepsis, as well as dealing with the proper use of newly developed compounds. Several aspects of prognosis in critically ill patients were investigated, focusing on biological markers and clinical indexes. Resuscitation received great attention, dealing with the effects of fluid infusion in hemodynamics and the lung. The information obtained can be used to address unknown effects of established therapies, to enlighten current clinical discussion on controversial topics, and to introduce novel medical resources and strategies. Future clinical work will rely heavily on these preclinical and laboratory data

The evolving story of medical emergency teams in quality improvement

Adverse events affect approximately 3% to 12% of hospitalized patients. At least a third, but as many as half, of such events are considered preventable. Detection of these events requires investments of time and money. A report in a recent issue of Critical Care used the medical emergency team activation as a trigger to perform a prospective standardized evaluation of charts. The authors observed that roughly one fourth of calls were related to a preventable adverse event, which is comparable to the previous literature. However, while previous studies relied on retrospective chart reviews, this study introduced the novel element of real-time characterization of events by the team at the moment of consultation. This methodology captures important opportunities for improvements in local care at a rate far higher than routine incident-reporting systems, but without requiring substantial investments of additional resources. Academic centers are increasingly recognizing engagement in quality improvement as a distinct career pathway. Involving such physicians in medical emergency teams will likely facilitate the dual roles of these as a clinical outreach arm of the intensive care unit and in identifying problems in care and leading to strategies to reduce them

Effect of Patient Sex on Intensive Care Unit Survival

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

O uso da drotrecogina alfa ativada na prática clínica e as atuais evidências Drotrecogin alfa activated in clinical practice and the current evidences

JUSTIFICATIVA E OBJETIVOS: O debate sobre a segurança e eficácia da drotrecogina alfa (DrotAA) encontra-se na ordem do dia, principalmente, em função dos resultados negativos observados em ensaios clínicos subseqüentes ao PROWESS e do impacto econômico no sistema de saúde relacionado ao custo elevado do fármaco. O objetivo deste estudo foi rever os principais estudos sobre a utilização da DrotAA em pacientes com sepse grave, com ênfase nas questões ligadas a sua eficácia e segurança. CONTEÚDO: Foram selecionados artigos sobre a utilização da DrotAA em pacientes com sepse publicados nos últimos dez anos no MedLine. Os seguintes unitermos foram utilizados: activated protein C; drotrecogin alfa; sepsis; septic shock; Xigris®. Estudos referenciados nos artigos selecionados na busca também foram utilizados. CONCLUSÕES: As taxas de letalidades e as complicações hemorrágicas associadas com o uso do fármaco foram maiores em grandes estudos observacionais do que aquelas descritas previamente nos ensaios clínicos. A luz dos resultados atualmente disponíveis, o uso da DrotAA deve ser reconsiderado até que novos ensaios clínicos possam subsidiar com informações adicionais sobre eficácia, segurança e na identificação dos subgrupos de pacientes com sepse grave que porventura possam ter benefício com o uso deste medicamento. A DrotAA deve servir de exemplo para que haja maior cautela com a rápida transposição de evidências ainda em construção para recomendações e diretrizes de tratamento de pacientes com sepse grave.<br>BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The debate on efficacy and patient safety related to the use of drotrecogin alfa (DrotAA) is timely, principally due to the negative results observed in clinical studies performed after the PROWESS study, and the economic cost-related impact of the drug on the healthcare system. The aim of this study was to review the main studies on the use of DrotAA in patients with severe sepsis. The focus was on drug efficacy-and patient safety-related issues. CONTENTS: Articles were selected by a MedLine search for studies on the use of DrotAA in patients with sepsis using the following key words: activated protein C; drotrecogin alfa; sepsis; septic shock; Xigris®. Additional references were retrieved from the studies initially selected. CONCLUSIONS: Mortality and bleeding complications associated with the use of DrotAA were more frequent in large observational studies than those reported in randomized trials. In the light of the current knowledge, routine use of DrotAA should be reevaluated until well-designed confirmatory clinical trials can clarify the true efficacy and safety of the drug and help identify the subgroup of patients that can benefit from use of DrotAA. Physicians should be cautious with the rapid transfer of evidences not well-documented, to the guidelines and recommendations practiced in the care and treatment of patients with severe sepsis