BACKGROUND Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) is frequently used for the management of acute respiratory failure (ARF) in very old patients (≥ 80 years), often in the context of a do-not-intubate order (DNI). We aimed to determine its efficacy and long-term outcome. METHODS Prospective cohort of all patients admitted to the medical ICU of a tertiary hospital during a 2-year period and managed usin...

OBJECTIVES To review perioperative airway management and ventilation strategy during the surgical removal of papilloma under suspension laryngoscopy in pediatric patients with severe airway obstruction. METHODS Seventy pediatric patients with degree III and IV laryngeal obstruction who underwent suspension laryngoscopy to remove laryngeal papillomatosis, between July 2005 and March 2009, were...

Pediatric Critical Care Medicine www.pccmjournal.org 587 Objectives: To determine whether the measurement of cerebral and somatic regional oxygen saturation during an extubation readiness trial predicts extubation failure in postoperative cardiac patients. Design: Prospective observational study. Setting: Tertiary care center cardiac ICU. Patients: Pediatric patients 1 day to 21 years old follo...

Objective: Positive pressure ventilation is known to have a deleterious effect on pulmonary blood ̄ow in patients with Fontan physiology. We evaluated the hemodynamic effects of pain free, spontaneous, non-positive pressure ventilation in patients undergoing Fontan staging procedures or completion. Fontan procedures, with creation of low pressure passive pulmonary circulation. Methods: Between ...

BACKGROUND Herpes simplex-1 virus (HSV-1) reactivation in the respiratory tract is common in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. However, susceptible ICU populations are poorly defined. Clinical recognition of HSV infection of the respiratory tract is difficult and the impact of such reactivation is not understood. MATERIALS AND METHODS A retrospective analysis of HSV-1 positive patients enco...

BACKGROUND Central nervous system complications are the most clinically important of those affecting mortality in patients undergoing coronary artery surgery. Newly developed sophisticated techniques and surgical interventions obviating the need for cardiopulmonary pumps have facilitated avoidance of these complications. In this study, we compared the impact of on-pump and off-pump coronary art...

OBJECTIVES This study aims to describe the association between different postoperative complications and the length of hospital stay among children undergoing neurosurgical procedures. METHODS A retrospective cohort study was carried out between May 2004 and May 2009 in a tertiary community hospital. All postoperative complications following neurosurgical procedures and their association with...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS To evaluate and describe airway complications in pediatric adenotonsillectomy. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective case-control study. METHODS A chart review of patients that underwent adenotonsillectomy between 2006 and 2010 was performed. Perioperative complications, patient characteristics, and surgeon and anesthesia technique were recorded. RESULTS A total of 682 charts w...

BACKGROUND The helmet is a well-tolerated interface for noninvasive ventilation, although it is associated with poor patient-ventilator interaction. A new helmet (NH) has proven to attenuate this limitation of the standard helmet (SH) in both bench study and healthy volunteers. The authors compared a NH and a SH in intensive care unit patients receiving noninvasive ventilation for prevention of...