Editorial October 2, 2019 A Measured Dose of Optimism for the Evolution of ICU-Based Palliative Care Christopher E. Cox, MD, May Hua, David Casarett JAMA. Published online October 2, 2019. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.12660 Ideally, palliative care is involved early in the course of illness, and usually in the outpatient setting. With this model of care, the treatment provided is guided by shared decision-making that includes the patient’s voice and a ...

Editorial October 1, 2019 Is High-Dose Vitamin C Beneficial for Patients With Sepsis? Emily B. Brant, Derek C. Angus JAMA. 2019;322(13):1257-1258. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.11643 For centuries, scurvy was the scourge of naval exploration. Then, in 1747, in arguably the first clinical trial, James Lind assigned sailors sick with scurvy to alternative acid treatments, and noted that those who received citrus fruits, as sources of ascorbic acid (vitami...

Editorial October 2, 2019 Added Benefit of Noninvasive Ventilation to High-Flow Nasal Oxygen to Prevent Reintubation in Higher-Risk Patients Irene Telias, Niall D. Ferguson JAMA. Published online October 2, 2019. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14609 Liberating patients from ongoing invasive mechanical ventilation is typically a 3-step process. First, clinicians must recognize that patients may no longer require mechanical ventilation—ie, when the reasons...

#LIVES2019: Should We Treat Fever in Critically Ill Patients Without Acute Brain Pathology? In one of the sessions at #LIVES2019 in Berlin, Prof. Frank Van Haren of Canberra Hospital, Australia, presented findings from the Randomised Evaluation of Active Control of Temperature versus Ordinary Temperature Management (REACTOR) trial. The question which this study aimed to answer was whether there is a reason why fever should be actively prevented and treated in all c...

Biotech Innovations October 8, 2019 Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitoring Jennifer Abbasi JAMA. 2019;322(14):1343. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.15537 Asmartphone video-based measurement tool accurately predicted blood pressure (BP) readings in a proof-of-concept study recently published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. The technology, dubbed transdermal optical imaging, records facial blood flow using a standard smartphone video came...

Preliminary Communication Caring for the Critically Ill PatientOctober 1, 2019 Effect of Vitamin C Infusion on Organ Failure and Biomarkers of Inflammation and Vascular Injury in Patients With Sepsis and Severe Acute Respiratory Failure: The CITRIS-ALI Randomized Clinical Trial Alpha A. Fowler III, Jonathon D. Truwit, R. Duncan Hite, et al JAMA. 2019;322(13):1261-1270. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.11825 Importanc...

Original Investigation Caring for the Critically Ill PatientOctober 2, 2019 Changes in End-of-Life Practices in European Intensive Care Units From 1999 to 2016 Charles L. Sprung, Bara Ricou, Christiane S. Hartog, et al JAMA. Published online October 2, 2019. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14608 Importance 背景 End-of-life decisions occur daily in intensive care units (ICUs) around the world, and these practices ...

#LIVES2019: Are Printed Journals Obsolete? In an interesting session today @ESICM #LIVES2019 in Berlin, Dr. Adrian Wong, Consultant, Intensive Care Medicine and Anaesthesia, Royal Surrey County Hospital, UK, presented his views about printed journals and their purpose in the digital age. Dr. Wong began with a short history of the first scientific journal devoted to science which was published in 1665 - The Philosophical Transaction of the Royal Society. The full...

Original Investigation Caring for the Critically Ill PatientOctober 2, 2019 Effect of Postextubation High-Flow Nasal Oxygen With Noninvasive Ventilation vs High-Flow Nasal Oxygen Alone on Reintubation Among Patients at High Risk of Extubation Failure: A Randomized Clinical Trial Arnaud W. Thille, Grégoire Muller, Arnaud Gacouin, et al JAMA. Published online October 2, 2019. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14901 Importanc...

#LIVES2019: Findings from the DIANA Study Liesbet De Bus of Ghent University Hospital, Belgium, presented the findings of the DetermInants of Antimicrobial use aNd de-escalAtion (DIANA) study @ESICM #LIVES2019 in Berlin. Dr. De Bus started off by explaining the concept of de-escalation and how it is all about finding a balance between early adequate antimicrobial therapy on the one hand and reducing unnecessary exposure to antimicrobials on the other hand, mainl...