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Intensive care unit ICU patients often require mechanical ventilation if they have lost the ability to breathe normally.. An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensive treatment unit (ITU) or critical care unit (CCU), is a special department of a hospital or health care facility that provides intensive care medicine.
An antihypotensive, also known as vasopressor, is an agent that raises blood pressure by constricting blood vessels, thereby increasing systemic vascular resistance. This is different from inotropes which increase the force of cardiac contraction. Some substances do both (e.g. dopamine, dobutamine).
Delivery of certain medications or fluids – medications such as vasopressors (e.g., norepinephrine, vasopressin, phenylephrine etc.), chemotherapeutic agents, or hypertonic solutions are damaging to peripheral veins and often require placement of a central line. Additionally, catheters with multiple lumens can facilitate the delivery of ...
The result was a four-part, front-page series that ran from October 23 to 26, 2005, entitled Critical Care: The making of an ICU nurse. [ 10 ] The added psychological stress of nursing in critical care units has been well-documented, and it has been argued the stress experienced in ICU areas are unique in the profession.
Cushing reflex (also referred to as the vasopressor response, the Cushing effect, the Cushing reaction, the Cushing phenomenon, the Cushing response, or Cushing's Law) is a physiological nervous system response to increased intracranial pressure (ICP) that results in Cushing's triad of increased blood pressure, irregular breathing, and bradycardia. [1]
Vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone, ADH) is another vasopressor often used in combination with norepinephrine [10] Certain vasopressors ( ephedrine , norepinephrine ). Norepinephrine (Levophed) is the most common first-line vasopressor for people who don't respond well to other hypotension treatments such as fluid resuscitation.
Vasopressors may be used if blood pressure does not improve with fluids. Crystalloid fluid resuscitation is preferred over colloid solutions for severe volume depletion not due to bleeding. The type of crystalloid used to resuscitate the patient can be individualized based on the patients' chemistries, estimated volume of resuscitation, acid ...
The SOFA scoring system is useful in predicting the clinical outcomes of critically ill patients. [8] According to an observational study at an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in Belgium, the mortality rate is at least 50% when the score is increased, regardless of initial score, in the first 96 hours of admission, 27% to 35% if the score remains unchanged, and less than 27% if the score is reduced. [9]