info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished
The beneficial effects of oxygen are widely known, but the potentially harmful effects of high oxygenation concentrations in blood and tissues have been less widely discussed. Providing supplementary oxygen can increase oxygen delivery in hypoxaemic patients, thus supporting cell function and metabolism and limiting organ dysfunction, but, in patients who are not hypoxaemic, supplemental oxygen will increase oxygen concentrations into nonphysiological hyperoxaemic ranges and may be associated with harmful effects. Here, we discuss the potentially harmful effects of hyperoxaemia in various groups of critically ill patients, including postcardiac arrest, traumatic brain injury or stroke, and sepsis. In all these groups, there is evidence that hyperoxia can be harmful and that oxygen prescription should be individualized according to repeated assessment of ongoing oxygen requirements.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a common nosocomial infection associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. Various risk factors for VAP have been identified and include the duration of ICU stay and of mechanical ventilation, a diagnosis of trauma, and severity of illness. Knowledge of these factors can promote early diagnosis and hence treatment. In addition to simple, but very effective, basic hygiene, different preventative strategies have been suggested, and can be divided into those that aim to limit airway colonization, and those that improve host defense mechanisms. Of the former, non-invasive ventilation is effective but not always applicable or available, nursing the patient in the semi-recumbent position is also associated with a reduced incidence of VAP but carries its own problems, stress ulcer prophylaxis remains controversial, and selective digestive decontamination is probably only relevant to certain subgroups of patients. Methods to improve host defense include early nutrition. Immunostimulatory therapies, such as interferon and granulocyte colony stimulating factor, require further research to confirm their place in the prevention or management of VAP.
SCOPUS: re.j
Norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and dopamine are commonly used first-line vasopressor agents in the treatment of patients with septic shock. Recently increasing interest has focused on whether one or other of these agents is superior in terms of improving outcome. Studies have looked particularly at the possible local effects of the vasopressors on splanchnic circulation, because evidence suggests that this area is important in the development and maintenance of septic shock. However, the many studies performed have yielded conflicting data and there is, as yet, little evidence to support one drug over the other in terms of their splanchnic effects. Overall, though, dopamine has many assets that make it a good first-line drug when compared with norepinephrine, and these are highlighted in the present, brief commentary.
