• The preoperative evaluation, which is performed prior to any anesthetic intervention, includes a history of present illness; past medical problems, including medication allergies; a past surgical and anesthetic history;…
• Because of increased bone elasticity, rib fractures are uncommon in children and indicate significant traumatic energy delivery, raising concern for injuries of underlying viscera or nonaccidental trauma. • Children…
• Poisoned patients are frequently encountered in the intensive care setting and often pose a diagnostic challenge. Skills in taking a history and performing a thorough physical exam, as well…
Pearls • Adverse drug events (ADEs) are defined as any injury resulting from both prescribed and unintended administration of drugs, including inappropriate use or inadvertent side effects not associated with…
• Accidental or unintentional hypothermia is a potentially lethal complication of exposure to cold. It can occur as a result of exposure to cold air, water immersion/submersion, or snow burial….
• The typical patient with septic shock has simultaneous derangements of cardiovascular function, intravascular volume status, respiratory function, immune/inflammatory regulation, renal function, coagulation, hepatic function, and/or metabolic function. • The…
• Pediatric multiple-organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) represents the leading final pathway to death in children who suffer critical illness triggered by acute insults such as sepsis (leading cause of MODS),…
• According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 1999 to 2010, 7415 deaths were attributable to excessive heat exposure or hyperthermia in the United States. • With…
• Hand hygiene is foundational to infection control in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), including the prevention of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs); units should be relentless in pursuing compliance with…
