Advances in pre-transplant treatment of cirrhosis-related organ dysfunction, intraoperative patient management, and improvements in the treatment of rejection and infections have made human liver transplantation an effective and valuable option for patients with end stage liver disease. However, many important factors, related both to an increasing "marginality" of the implanted graft and unexpected perioperative complications still make immediate post-operative care challenging and the early outcome unpredictable. In recent years sicker patients with multiple comorbidities and organ dysfunction have been undergoing Liver transplantation; appropriate critical care management is required to support prompt graft recovery and prevent systemic complications. Early post-operative management is highly demanding as significant changes may occur in both the allograft and the "distant" organs. A functioning transplanted liver is almost always associated with organ system recovery, resulting in a new life for the patient. However, in the unfortunate event of graft dysfunction, the unavoidable development of multi-organ failure will require an enhanced level of critical care support and a prolonged ICU stay. Strict monitoring and sustainment of cardiorespiratory function, frequent assessment of graft performance, timely recognition of unexpected complications and the institution of prophylactic measures to prevent extrahepatic organ system dysfunction are mandatory in the immediate post-operative period. A reduced rate of complications and satisfactory outcomes have been obtained from multidisciplinary, collaborative efforts, skillful vigilance, and a thorough knowledge of pathophysiologic characteristics of the transplanted liver.

The efficacy of non-invasive ventilation (NIV) in acute respiratory failure secondary to SARS-CoV-2 infection remains controversial. Current literature mainly examined efficacy, safety and potential predictors of NIV failure provided out of the intensive care unit (ICU). On the contrary, the outcomes of ICU patients, intubated after NIV failure, remain to be explored. The aims of the present study are: (1) investigating in-hospital mortality in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ICU patients receiving endotracheal intubation after NIV failure and (2) assessing whether the length of NIV application affects patient survival. This observational multicenter study included all consecutive COVID-19 adult patients, admitted into the twenty-five ICUs of the COVID-19 VENETO ICU network (February–April 2020), who underwent endotracheal intubation after NIV failure. Among the 704 patients admitted to ICU during the study period, 280 (40%) presented the inclusion criteria and were enrolled. The median age was 69 [60–76] years; 219 patients (78%) were male. In-hospital mortality was 43%. Only the length of NIV application before ICU admission (OR 2.03 (95% CI 1.06–4.98), p = 0.03) and age (OR 1.18 (95% CI 1.04–1.33), p < 0.01) were identified as independent risk factors of in-hospital mortality; whilst the length of NIV after ICU admission did not affect patient outcome. In-hospital mortality of ICU patients intubated after NIV failure was 43%. Days on NIV before ICU admission and age were assessed to be potential risk factors of greater in-hospital mortality.

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Surgery for esophageal cancer is a highly stressful and painful procedure, and a significant amount of analgesics may be required to eliminate perioperative pain and blunt the stress response to surgery. Proper management of postoperative pain has invariably been shown to reduce the incidence of postoperative complications and accelerate recovery. Neuraxial analgesic techniques after major thoracic and upper abdominal surgery have long been established to reduce respiratory, cardiovascular, metabolic, inflammatory, and neurohormonal complications.The aim of this review is to evaluate and discuss the relevant clinical benefits and outcome, as well as the possibilities and limits of thoracic epidural anesthesia/analgesia (TEA) in the setting of esophageal resections. A comprehensive search of original articles was conducted investigating relevant literature on MEDLINE, Cochrane reviews, Google Scholar, PubMed, and EMBASE from 1985 to July2017. The relationship between TEA and important endpoints such as the quality of postoperative pain control, postoperative respiratory complications, surgical stress-induced immunosuppression, the overall postoperative morbidity, length of hospital stay, and major outcomes has been explored and reported. TEA has proven to enable patients to mobilize faster, cooperate comfortably with respiratory physiotherapists and achieve satisfactory postoperative lung functions more rapidly. The superior analgesia provided by thoracic epidurals compared to that from parenteral opioids may decrease the incidence of ineffective cough, atelectasis and pulmonary infections, while the associated sympathetic block has been shown to enhance bowel blood flow, prevent reductions in gastric conduit perfusion, and reduce the duration of ileus. Epidural anesthesia/analgesia is still commonly used for major 'open' esophageal surgery, and the recognized advantages in this setting are soundly established, in particular as regards the early recovery from anesthesia, the quality of postoperative pain control, and the significantly shorter duration of postoperative mechanical ventilation. However, this technique requires specific technical skills for an optimal conduction and is not devoid of risks, complications, and failures.

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Background Pathophysiological features of coronavirus disease 2019-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (COVID-19 ARDS) were indicated to be somewhat different from those described in nonCOVID-19 ARDS, because of relatively preserved compliance of the respiratory system despite marked hypoxemia. We aim ascertaining whether respiratory system static compliance (Crs), driving pressure (DP), and tidal volume normalized for ideal body weight (VT/kg IBW) at the 1st day of controlled mechanical ventilation are associated with intensive care unit (ICU) mortality in COVID-19 ARDS. Methods Observational multicenter cohort study. All consecutive COVID-19 adult patients admitted to 25 ICUs belonging to the COVID-19 VENETO ICU network (February 28th–April 28th, 2020), who received controlled mechanical ventilation, were screened. Only patients fulfilling ARDS criteria and with complete records of Crs, DP and VT/kg IBW within the 1st day of controlled mechanical ventilation were included. Crs, DP and VT/kg IBW were collected in sedated, paralyzed and supine patients. Results A total of 704 COVID-19 patients were screened and 241 enrolled. Seventy-one patients (29%) died in ICU. The logistic regression analysis showed that: (1) Crs was not linearly associated with ICU mortality (p value for nonlinearity = 0.01), with a greater risk of death for values < 48 ml/cmH2O; (2) the association between DP and ICU mortality was linear (p value for nonlinearity = 0.68), and increasing DP from 10 to 14 cmH2O caused significant higher odds of in-ICU death (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.06–1.99); (3) VT/kg IBW was not associated with a significant increase of the risk of death (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.55–1.52). Multivariable analysis confirmed these findings. Conclusions Crs < 48 ml/cmH2O was associated with ICU mortality, while DP was linearly associated with mortality. DP should be kept as low as possible, even in the case of relatively preserved Crs, irrespective of VT/kg IBW, to reduce the risk of death.