The LITFL Critical Care Compendium is a comprehensive collection of pages concisely covering the core topics and controversies of critical care.
High Frequency Oscillation Ventilation (HFOV) is an unconventional form of mechanical ventilation that maintains lung recruitment, avoids overdistention, and does not rely on bulk flow for oxygenation and ventilation
Chemical restraint or emergency sedation is used for management of acute behavioral emergencies. A drug is considered a restraint when it is used as a restriction to manage the patient's behavior or restrict the patient's freedom of movement and is not a standard treatment or dosage for the patient's condition.
Reviewed and revised 5 August 2015 OVERVIEW Haemostatic resuscitation is a key component of damage control resuscitation and forms the basis of most massive transfusion protocols involves resuscitation with blood components resembling whole blood aims to avoid or ameliorate acute coagulopathy…
"Why don't we wash our hands?" is a SMACCtalk that explores why hand hygiene targets remains such a challenge for healthcare workers.
Magnesium: intracellular cation; hypomagnesaemia = common electrolyte abnormality in ICU
NSTEACS is non-ST elevation acute coronary syndrome, and includes non-STEMI and unstable angina
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a devastating condition in terms of personal, societal and wider economic impact
The core physiological monitor used in TBI is ICP monitoring, in addition to standard monitoring used for any critically ill patient
Permissive hypotension is also known as hypotensive resuscitation and low volume resuscitation. The concept remains controversial and is primarily applicable to the penetrating trauma patient
STEMI is a type of acute coronary syndrome that requires emergency reperfusion therapy. Definition and assessment of STEMI is described in Acute Coronary Syndromes
Toxidromes associated with hyperthermia may be difficult to distinguish: serotonin syndrome; anticholingeric syndrome; sympathomimetic syndrome; neuroleptic malignant syndrome; malignant hyperthermia
Liver transplantation is almost a routine procedure in ICU now, with >90% 1-year survival. Orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) involves recipient hepatectomy, revascularisation of the donor graft and biliary reconstruction