INTRODUCTION The pathogenicity of late respiratory infections with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in the critically ill is unclear. METHODS In four critically ill patients with persistent pulmonary infiltrates of unknown origin and isolation of HSV-1 from tracheal aspirate or bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, at 7 (1-11) days after start of mechanical ventilatory support, a pulmonary leak in...

Microcirculatory alterations are frequently observed in critically ill patients undergoing major surgery and those who suffer from trauma or sepsis. Despite the need for adequate fluid administration to restore microcirculation, there is no consensus regarding optimal fluid therapy for these patients. The recent recognition of the importance of the endothelial glycocalyx layer in capillary flui...

Over 500 million of the current world population will die from diseases caused by smoking cigarettes. The symptoms and signs of nicotine withdrawal are not well described in the critically ill. Since the various conditions of critical illness may lead to clinical manifestations mimicking nicotine withdrawal, describing its specific manifestations may not be easy. A few case reports suggest that...

Levosimendan, the active enantiomer of simendan, is a calcium sensitizer developed for treatment of decompensated heart failure, exerts its effects independently of the beta adrenergic receptor and seems beneficial in cases of severe, intractable heart failure. Levosimendan is usually administered as 24-h infusion, with or without a loading dose, but dosing needs adjustment in patients with sev...

abstract background: the aim of this study was to investigate the various aspects of illness perceptions about breast cancer in affected patients. methods: a cross-sectional study enrolled 140 patients with breast cancer in their chemotherapy period within 14 months. the revised illness perception questionnaire (revised ipq) was used to assess the disease representations of breast cancer. the d...

INTRODUCTION This prospective study investigated whether plasma ionized calcium concentration abnormalities and other electrolyte disturbances represent risk factors for the development of critical illness polyneuromyopathy (CIPNM) in ICU patients. METHODS One hundred and ninety consecutive adult critically ill patients with prolonged ICU stay (longer than 7 days) were prospectively evaluated...

epstein-barr virus (ebv) is a ubiquitous human -herpesvirus that infects about 95% of the adult population. the majority of primary infections occurs in early childhood and is generally subclinical; it can cause infectious mononucleosis (im), which is usually a self-limiting lymphoproliferative disorder. however, infection of ebv occasionally results in severe, often lethal diseases, which inc...

Neurologic complications of critical illness require extensive clinical and neurophysiologic evaluation to establish a reliable prognosis. Many sequelae of intensive care unit (ICU) treatment, such as delirium and ICU-acquired weakness, although highly associated with adverse outcomes, are less suitable for prognostication, but should rather prompt clinicians to seek previously unnoticed persis...

Impaired health-related quality of life after critical illness has been demonstrated in a number of studies. It is not clear exactly how or why critical illness and intensive care lead to impaired health status, but understanding this association is an important step to improving long-term outcomes of the critically ill. There is growing evidence that neuro-psychological symptoms play a signifi...

A newly acquired neuromuscular cause of weakness has been found in 25-85% of critically ill patients. Three distinct entities have been identified: (1) critical illness polyneuropathy (CIP); (2) acute myopathy of intensive care (itself with three subtypes); and (3) a syndrome with features of both 1 and 2 (called critical illness myopathy and/or neuropathy or CRIMYNE). CIP is primarily a distal...