INTRODUCTION Prior reports suggest that restrictive ICU visitation policies can negatively impact patients and their loved ones. However, visitation practices in US ICUs, and the hospital factors associated with them, are not well described. METHODS A telephone survey was made of ICUs, stratified by US region and hospital type (community, federal, or university), between 2008 and 2009. Hospit...

Bloodstream infections (BSIs) are frequent in ICU and is a prognostic factor of severe sepsis. Community acquired BSIs usually due to susceptible bacteria should be clearly differentiated from healthcare associated BSIs frequently due to resistant hospital strains. Early adequate treatment is key and should use guidelines and direct examination of samples performed from the infectious source. P...

BACKGROUND To ascertain current chest radiography practice in intensive care units (ICUs) in the Netherlands. METHODS Postal survey: a questionnaire was sent to all ICUs with > 5 beds suitable for mechanical ventilation; pediatric ICUs were excluded. When an ICU performed daily-routine chest radiographs in any group of patients it was considered to be a "daily-routine chest radiography" ICU. ...

Treating patients with multidrugresistant (MDR) pathogens is an increasing challenge for intensive care unit (ICU) physicians. In the ICU, compared to other hospital departments, severe infections are most prevalent and antimicrobial use is most abundant. Not surprisingly, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has emerged primarily in the intensive care setting, where multiple facilitators for the dev...

let $g$ be a connected graph with vertex set $v(g)$‎. ‎the‎ ‎degree resistance distance of $g$ is defined as $d_r(g) = sum_{{u‎,‎v} subseteq v(g)} [d(u)+d(v)] r(u,v)$‎, ‎where $d(u)$ is the degree‎ ‎of vertex $u$‎, ‎and $r(u,v)$ denotes the resistance distance between‎ ‎$u$ and $v$‎. ‎in this paper‎, ‎we characterize $n$-vertex unicyclic‎ ‎graphs having minimum and second minimum degree resista...

INTRODUCTION The objective of this study was to determine the thermal injury fluid resuscitation protocols at intensive care units (ICUs) in the United Kingdom and Ireland. MATERIALS AND METHODS A telephone questionnaire was designed to survey the fluid resuscitation protocols of ICUs at all hospitals with plastic/burn surgery departments in the British Isles in 2010. The feedback from the qu...

The emergence of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii is a major concern to healthcare providers and facilities in many parts the world. This bacterial pathogen commonly implicated hospital-acquired infections, particularly critically ill patients admitted intensive care unit (ICU). extensive use antibiotics, ICUs, lack proper infection control interventions hospitals have led an increas...

INTRODUCTION Controversy exists about the benefit of screening for prevention of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in intensive care units (ICUs) and recent studies have shown conflicting results. The aim of this observational study was to describe and evaluate the association between MRSA incidence densities (IDs) and screening and control measures in ICUs participating in the...