The Nervous System
The Nervous System INTRODUCTION The central nervous system (CNS) alterations that are common in surgical critical illness are listed in Table 9.1. The most common one is traumatic brain injury…
The Hematopoietic System
The Hematopoietic System Hematopoietic system topics that are most frequently encountered in surgical critical illness are listed in Table 10.1. SUBMASSIVE TRANSFUSION The most common reason for the administration of…
The Gastrointestinal System
The Gastrointestinal System BASIC PHYSIOLOGY The reader is referred to gastrointestinal disease textbooks to review the basic physiology of the intestinal tract. This chapter will highlight gastrointestinal pathophysiology linked principally…
The Renal System
The Renal System BASIC PHYSIOLOGY The kidneys help preserve intravascular volume, excrete products of metabolism, and regulate acid-base status. The physiology of sodium and water reabsorption that is linked to…
The Pulmonary System
The Pulmonary System PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOPHYSIOLOGY The lung primarily accomplishes two life-sustaining processes: addition of oxygen to and removal of carbon dioxide from the blood (gas exchange). Approximately 300 million…
The Critical Surgical Abdomen
The Critical Surgical Abdomen DEFINITION For this manual, the critical surgical abdomen is defined as abdominal insults and/or pathophysiological sequelae that result in an open abdomen in the intensive care…
Inflammation
Inflammation LOCAL PROCESS Inflammation presumably evolved as a process to achieve two principle benefits—wound healing and defense against microbiologic invasion. When insults are relatively small (i.e., elective groin hernia wound,…
The Circulation
The Circulation OXYGEN DELIVERY Oxygen delivery to cells is vital for cell metabolic activity and constitutes the principle function of the cardiopulmonary organ system. Before discussing the cardiovascular component of…
The Critical Care Surgeon
The Critical Care Surgeon While the designation of a specialized hospital site for immediate postoperative care dates back to the early 1940s, the creation of surgical intensive care units with…
