Prendergast and colleagues evaluated the oral health status of intubated patients in a neuroscience intensive care unit (ICU) through intubation and 48 hours after extubation, and described the effect of oral care on intracranial pressure (ICP). They found the following:
See Article, pp 368–376
The systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is a severe hyperinflammatory condition frequently observed in critically ill patients. In this issue, NeSmith and colleagues show that the SIRS scores on ICU admission predicted ICU length of stay. The SIRS score is based on the SIRS criteria, where 1 point is assigned to each of 4 criteria:
See Article, pp 339–347
The relationship between oral care and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) has gained much attention, primarily in adult medical and surgical (especially cardiac and trauma) populations, but there are fewer data in the neuroscience population (see above) and even less focus in pediatric patients. In this issue 2 articles...