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Using a simple clinical screening tool, patients considered at high risk for death in this closed medical ICU received a basic palliative care consultation. Those with unmet needs received a full consultation with ongoing intervention from the palliative care team. This process shortened ICU length of stay without affecting mortality rates or discharge disposition.
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This retrospective analysis of data on patients with acute lung injury shows that transfusion of red blood cells in such patients is associated with increased in-hospital mortality, and that the risk is highest with transfusion of non-leukoreduced blood and transfusion following the onset of acute lung injury.
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This systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrates that oral decontamination with antiseptic preparations decreases the risk of ventilator-associated pneumonia but has no effect on mortality, duration of mechanical ventilation or length of stay in the ICU.
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Many nursing home patients are admitted with prescriptions for proton pump inhibitors or H2-receptor antagonists without any obvious indication.
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This study of oral versus intravenous prednisolone in patients hospitalized with exacerbations of COPD showed no differences in any outcome variable between the two forms of administration.
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RCVS occurs in a variety of clinical settings, and should be considered and investigated in any person with sudden severe headache that is unexplained by other disorders.
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Two hundred eighty-eight patients hospitalized with severe community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) were followed for 28 days in a prospective multicenter study.
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Weight gain has long been used as a marker of fluid retention in heart failure patients. It is a cheap, simple test that can be performed daily in patients' homes.
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This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial demonstrates that administration of erythropoietin once a week for three weeks does not reduce the incidence of red blood cell transfusion in a mixed population of critically ill patients but is associated with an increased incidence of thrombotic events and a possible decrease in mortality in trauma patients.
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In this survey of US hospitals, more than half did not have an identifiable ICU director. Loss of autonomy and income for admitting primary physicians were perceived as important barriers to implementation of the Leapfrog Group's ICU physician staffing guidelines.