Contamination episodes or disease clusters provide unique opportunities to evaluate health effects and investigate aetiology. Epidemiological approaches to research in this area require first establishing the existence of a true cluster. Identification of both the cases and the denominator population, determining individual exposure, collecting data on potential confounders, and linking epidemi...

Table A1. Search Terms Generated by the Crowd (a) Influenza – Crowd-Squared Search Terms and % of Turkers Mentioning Each Term Search Term % Mention Search Term % Mention Search Term % Mention Search Term % Mention sick 68% influenza 4% achy 2% fatigue 1% fever 39% coughing 4% weak 2% home 1% cough 21% germs 4% bad 2% hospital 1% cold 16% headache 4% shots 2% nyquil 1% shot 13% ache 4% body ach...

The ¹⁷O nucleus has been used recently by several groups for magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of cerebral metabolism. Inhalational delivery of ¹⁷O(2) in very brief pulses could, in theory, have significant advantages for determination of the cerebral metabolic rate for oxygen (CMRO₂) with MR imaging. Mechanical ventilators, however, are not typically capable of creating step changes in gas conce...

Heart failure remains one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The advent of mechanical circulatory support devices has allowed significant improvements in patient survival and quality of life for those with advanced or end-stage heart failure. We provide a general overview of past and current mechanical circulatory support devices encompassing options for both short-...

Patient-ventilator interaction is a key element in optimizing mechanical ventilation. The change from inspiration to expiration is a crucial point in the mechanically ventilated breath, and is termed "cycling." Patient-ventilator asynchrony may occur if the flow at which the ventilator cycles to exhalation does not coincide with the termination of neural inspiration. Ideally, the ventilator ter...

Computer control of mechanical ventilators includes the operator-ventilator interface and the ventilator-patient interface. New ventilation modes represent the evolution of engineering control schemes. The various ventilation control strategies behind the modes have an underlying organization, and understanding that organization improves the clinician's appreciation of the capabilities of vario...

BACKGROUND There are contradictory reports concerning hypercapnia as a predictor of a better outcome in COPD. This study examined the clinical implications of hypercapnea in COPD patients (M:F = 59:19) who required mechanical ventilation. METHODS The clinical parameters at the time of MICU admission, the total ventilation time, the APACHE II score and the pulmonary function testing were retro...

BACKGROUND Quality control procedures vary considerably among the providers of equipment for home mechanical ventilation (HMV). METHODS A multicentre quality control survey of HMV was performed at the home of 300 patients included in the HMV programmes of four hospitals in Barcelona. It consisted of three steps: (1) the prescribed ventilation settings, the actual settings in the ventilator co...

The home ventilator market has grown in size and complexity. The aim of this study was to determine if common home ventilators are user-friendly for trained intensive care unit (ICU) physicians. Eleven ventilator models were tested by 13 ICU physicians without practical experience in home mechanical ventilation. Six tests were defined (start-up, unlocking, mode and setting recognition, mode cha...