Atrial Fibrillation in Critical Illness In ICU Wed, 11 Jun 2025 Atrial fibrillation (AF) presents significant management challenges in the ICU. Pre-existing AF affects 10–20% of ICU patients, while new-onset AF (NOAF) occurs in 5–15% of critically ill individuals and up to 46% in those with septic shock. NOAF may be transient or indicate an underlying predisposition, complicating treatment decisions.  AF in critical illness is linked to worse o...

Electronic Sepsis Screening and Mortality  In Sepsis Wed, 12 Mar 2025 Early recognition and treatment of sepsis are crucial for improving patient outcomes, leading to clinical guidelines recommending sepsis screening programmes. However, evidence supporting these programmes is limited. Observational studies suggest screening improves care processes, such as timely lactate measurement and antibiotic administration, and may reduce mortality. However...

Industry Payments and Prescription of Inhaled Medications In ICU Tue, 3 Jun 2025 The Physician Payments Sunshine Act mandates public disclosure of payments from pharmaceutical and medical device companies to clinicians. While previous research shows these payments can influence prescribing habits, less is known about their impact on drug-device combinations like inhalers. These products involve both medication and a delivery device, often requiring cli...

Intravenous Tenecteplase Before Endovascular Thrombectomy In ICU Tue, 3 Jun 2025 Intravenous thrombolysis before endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) in stroke patients has potential benefits for improving reperfusion but also carries a risk of increased intracranial haemorrhage. Since 2018, six randomised trials have found no significant difference in outcomes between combining thrombolysis (mainly with alteplase) and EVT versus EVT alone. Tenecteplase, a ...

OPTPRESS: Targeting High Mean Arterial Pressure for Patients With Septic Shock  In Sepsis Tue, 3 Jun 2025 Sepsis is a serious global health issue, with septic shock carrying a high mortality rate (~38.5%). The optimal blood pressure target for managing septic shock remains unclear. Recent trials show that maintaining a mean arterial pressure (MAP) above 65 mmHg isn’t always beneficial, but higher targets (80–85 mmHg) may help patients with chronic...

Editor's Note  What if Readmission Prevents Death?—The Challenge of Composite Outcomes Deborah Grady, Raegan W. Durant, Timothy S. Anderson JAMA Intern Med Published Online: August 11, 2025 doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2025.3709 Composite outcomes, which combine several different events into a single outcome, are frequently used in clinical trials. Clinical trials testing transition of care interventions often measure distinct outcomes such as readmissio...

#EA25: Managing the Bloody AirwayIn ICUMon, 26 May 2025 Difficult airway management is a core competency for any anaesthesiologist and can often mean the difference between life and death. Among the most complex and high-risk scenarios is the bloody airway, where active bleeding significantly impairs visibility and complicates even standard difficult airway techniques. Failure to control bleeding in the airway is a major contributor to airway-related mortality. ...

Invited Commentary  Antibiotic Prophylaxis in Variceal Hemorrhage—Time to Stop? Catherine Mezzacappa, Guadalupe Garcia-Tsao JAMA Intern Med Published Online: August 11, 2025 doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2025.3841 In their systematic review and bayesian meta-analysis published in this issue of JAMA Internal Medicine, Prosty et al1 assess the evidence supporting the universally recommended practice of administering prophylactic broad-spectrum ant...

#EA25: Anaesthesia in 2050: How Emerging Technologies Will Transform Practice In ICU Sun, 25 May 2025 Each year, Euroanaesthesia opens with the prestigious Sir Robert Macintosh Lecture to honour people who have made extraordinary contributions to the fields of anaesthesiology and intensive care. In light of the rapid and transformative rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare, this year’s lecture explored the profound implications of emerg...

Editorial  New Pathways to Treat Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia: Connecting the DOTS Erin K. McCreary, Preeti N. Malani JAMA Published Online: August 13, 2025 doi: 10.1001/jama.2025.13717 Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia is a leading cause of infection-related death worldwide.1 Roughly 30% of patients who develop S aureus bacteremia will die within a year of index culture, yet relatively few randomized clinical trials have evaluat...