Key Points ▪ The medical literature can be accessed in many ways, ranging from the primary literature as indexed in sources like PubMed, to sources catering to medical professionals, and via the lay press and social media as well. ▪…
Key Points ▪ Clinical research describes the characteristics and mechanisms of disease and injury in humans and investigates drugs, devices, diagnostic products, and bundles of care with the aim of providing high-quality evidence to guide clinical practice that improves patients’…
Key Points ▪ Exposure to waste anesthetic gas in clinical practice is unavoidable. In the United States, the limits of exposure to waste gases are set by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which recommends a time-weighted…
Key Points ▪ Major burn injury results in pathophysiologic changes affecting virtually all organs from the onset of injury until wounds are healed. Anesthesiologists are often called on to care for burn injury patients through their hospitalization including acute airway…
Key Points ▪ Cardiac arrest is a major public health issue worldwide. Despite significant advances in resuscitation science, survival rates remain considerably low. Improvement of patient survival and neurologic outcome relies on the development and implementation of vigorous and evidence-based…
Key Points ▪ Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) consists of a specific heart-lung machine that provides circulatory support and/or gas exchange for patients with severe but potentially reversible respiratory or cardiac failure or both. Although the term <ce:italic>extracorporeal life support</ce:italic> (ECLS)…
Key Points ▪ Critical care of the nervous system is based on control of cerebral and spinal cord physiology and the prevention of secondary insults. This goal, in turn, depends on the comprehensive maintenance and adequacy of physiologic parameters and…
Key Points ▪ Anesthesiologists have been key contributors to the field of critical care, both in the advancement of clinical practice and development of technology relevant to the field. ▪ Intensive care unit structure, staffing, and utilization varies considerably among…
Key Points ▪ Postoperative cognitive concerns have been voiced by older patients, their families, and caregivers for over a century, and more recently documented with objective testing. ▪ The term postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is neither recognizable by the general…
Key Points ▪ The process of nociception is a dynamic process (i.e., neuroplasticity) with multiple points of modulation. Persistent noxious input may result in relatively rapid neuronal sensitization and possibly persistent pain. ▪ Postoperative pain, especially when poorly controlled, results…