Critical Care News

In 2011, an estimated 4% of acute-care patients in the United States acquired a health care-associated infection, or HAI, according to researchers. The burden from 2011 to 2012 in Europe was 6%. Although much research has explored the global burden and prevalence of HAIs, the impact on patients has been relatively undocumented, researchers said.

Direct discharge home from the ICU does not increase health care utilization or mortality, according to research published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Among opioid-prescribing guidelines for 20 common surgeries created by a panel of health care providers and patients from the John Hopkins Health System, panelists recommended a range of zero to 20 pills for three out of four orthopedic surgeries evaluated, which was the highest range of opioids among the eight health care specialties reviewed, according to a release from John Hopkins Medicine.

High-quality patient transfer from the ICU to the hospital ward requires standardized and multimodal communication, access to resources and an institutional culture that encourages continuity of care, according to research published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Although hospitals have been effective at reducing patient readmissions, the risk for readmission for hospitalized patients has increased for two of five clinical cohorts, according to research published in the Journal of Hospital Medicine.

Researchers identified 19 risk factors for CV events within 1 year after MI and developed a risk-prediction model.

Children with Down syndrome are more likely to develop severe respiratory syncytial virus, requiring hospitalizations and the use of additional medications and mechanical ventilation, when compared with children without Down syndrome, according to research published in Pediatrics.

A novel blood test predicted the absence of intracranial injuries on head CT scan after suspected traumatic brain injury with high accuracy, according to findings published in The Lancet Neurology.

Adults with type 2 diabetes who underwent bariatric surgery had lower risk for neuropathy, nephropathy and retinopathy than those who underwent usual care, according to findings recently published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

A novel high-sensitivity troponin T protocol accurately ruled out MI in patients who visited an ED, according to a research letter published in Circulation.