EVERE SEPSIS AND SEPTIC SHOCK AREcommon problems in the intensive care unit (ICU) and carry a high mortality. Endotoxin, one of the principal components on the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria, is considered relevant to their pathogenesis. High levels of endotoxin activity are associated with worse clinical outcomes. 1 However, effectiveness of endotoxintargeted therapy is still controversial. 2,3 Polymyxin B, an antibiotic with high affinity for endotoxin, has been bound and immobilized to polystyrene fibers in a medical device for hemoperfusion. This device can effectively bind endotoxin both in vitro and in vivo and could potentially interrupt the biological cascade of sepsis. 4 In a systematic review, 5 direct hemoperfusion with the See also p 2496 and Patient Page.

Global health care is experiencing an unprecedented surge in the number of critically ill patients who require mechanical ventilation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The requirement for relatively long periods of ventilation in those who survive means that many are considered fxor tracheostomy to free patients from ventilatory support and maximise scarce resources. COVID-19 provides unique challenges for tracheostomy care: health-care workers need to safely undertake tracheostomy procedures and manage patients afterwards, minimising risks of nosocomial transmission and compromises in the quality of care. Conflicting recommendations exist about case selection, the timing and performance of tracheostomy, and the subsequent management of patients. In response, we convened an international working group of individuals with relevant expertise in tracheostomy. We did a literature and internet search for reports of research pertaining to tracheostomy during the COVID-19 pandemic, supplemented by sources comprising statements and guidance on tracheostomy care. By synthesising early experiences from countries that have managed a surge in patient numbers, emerging virological data, and international, multidisciplinary expert opinion, we aim to provide consensus guidelines and recommendations on the conduct and management of tracheostomy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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This consensus describes 25 statements regarding the acquisition and interpretation of microcirculatory images needed to guide the assessment of the microcirculation in critically ill patients.

Summary Novel coronavirus 2019 is a single‐stranded, ribonucleic acid virus that has led to an international pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019. Clinical data from the Chinese outbreak have been reported, but experiences and recommendations from clinical practice during the Italian outbreak have not. We report the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak on regional and national healthcare infrastructure. We also report on recommendations based on clinical experiences of managing patients throughout Italy. In particular, we describe key elements of clinical management, including: safe oxygen therapy; airway management; personal protective equipment; and non‐technical aspects of caring for patients diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019. Only through planning, training and team working will clinicians and healthcare systems be best placed to deal with the many complex implications of this new pandemic.

IntroductionThe safety of arterial hyperoxia is under increasing scrutiny. We performed a systematic review of the literature to determine whether any association exists between arterial hyperoxia and mortality in critically ill patient subsets.MethodsMedline, Thomson Reuters Web of Science and Scopus databases were searched from inception to June 2014. Observational or interventional studies evaluating the relationship between hyperoxia (defined as a supranormal arterial O2 tension) and mortality in adult intensive care unit (ICU) patients were included. Studies primarily involving patients with exacerbations of chronic pulmonary disease, acute lung injury and perioperative administration were excluded. Adjusted odds ratio (OR) of patients exposed versus those not exposed to hyperoxia were extracted, if available. Alternatively, unadjusted outcome data were recorded. Data on patients, study characteristics and the criteria used for defining hyperoxia exposure were also extracted. Random-effects models were used for quantitative synthesis of the data, with a primary outcome of hospital mortality.ResultsIn total 17 studies (16 observational, 1 prospective before-after) were identified in different patient categories: mechanically ventilated ICU (number of studies (k) = 4, number of participants (n) = 189,143), post-cardiac arrest (k = 6, n = 19,144), stroke (k = 2, n = 5,537), and traumatic brain injury (k = 5, n = 7,488). Different criteria were used to define hyperoxia in terms of PaO2 value (first, highest, worst, mean), time of assessment and predetermined cutoffs. Data from studies on ICU patients were not pooled because of extreme heterogeneity (inconsistency (I2) 96.73%). Hyperoxia was associated with increased mortality in post-cardiac arrest patients (OR = 1.42 (1.04 to 1.92) I2 67.73%) stroke (OR = 1.23 (1.06 to 1.43) I2 0%) and traumatic brain injury (OR = 1.41 (1.03 to 1.94) I2 64.54%). However, these results are limited by significant heterogeneity between studies.ConclusionsHyperoxia may be associated with increased mortality in patients with stroke, traumatic brain injury and those resuscitated from cardiac arrest. However, these results are limited by the high heterogeneity of the included studies.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13054-014-0711-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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BackgroundSeveral reports suggest that implementation of the Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) guidelines is associated with mortality reduction in sepsis. However, adherence to the guideline-based resuscitation and management sepsis bundles is still poor.ObjectiveTo perform a systematic review of studies evaluating the impact of performance improvement programs on compliance with Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) guideline-based bundles and/or mortality.Data SourcesMedline (PubMed), Scopus and Intercollegiate Studies Institute Web of Knowledge databases from 2004 (first publication of the SSC guidelines) to October 2014.Study SelectionStudies on adult patients with sepsis, severe sepsis or septic shock that evaluated changes in compliance to individual/combined bundle targets and/or mortality following the implementation of performance improvement programs. Interventions may consist of educational programs, process changes or both.Data ExtractionData from the included studies were extracted independently by two authors. Unadjusted binary data were collected in order to calculate odds ratios (OR) for compliance to individual/combined bundle targets. Adjusted (if available) or unadjusted data of mortality were collected. Random-effects models were used for the data synthesis.ResultsFifty observational studies were selected. Despite high inconsistency across studies, performance improvement programs were associated with increased compliance with the complete 6-hour bundle (OR = 4.12 [95% confidence interval 2.95-5.76], I2 = 87.72%, k = 25, N = 50,081) and the complete 24-hour bundle (OR = 2.57 [1.74-3.77], I2 = 85.22%, k = 11, N = 45,846) and with a reduction in mortality (OR = 0.66 [0.61-0.72], I2 = 87.93%, k = 48, N = 434,447). Funnel plots showed asymmetry.ConclusionsPerformance improvement programs are associated with increased adherence to resuscitation and management sepsis bundles and with reduced mortality in patients with sepsis, severe sepsis or septic shock.