The Many Faces of Recurrent Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia Caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Neil M. Ampel, MD
Displaying Charges for Lab Tests at Order Entry Might Help Control Costs
Aaron J. Calderon, MD, FACP, SFHM
Although responsible for only a small proportion of UGIB episodes, tumor-associated bleeding can cause substantial blood loss — often necessitating transfusion — and presents particular treatment challenges.
Most studies of upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) have focused on peptic ulcers. Tumors are responsible for 1% to 5% of UGIB episodes and present particular treatment challenges. To provide more information on such cases, investigators retrospectively reviewed the records of consecutive patients hospitalized with UGIB at a large urban U.S. hospital between January 2005 and January 2012.
The Right Process Measures Might Reliably Determine the Quality of Stroke Care
A nationwide English study shows that highly organized stroke centers perform better on core process measures and have a correspondingly lower stroke mortality rate.
Orlistat Probably Doesn't Cause Acute Liver Injury
Excess risk for liver injury was present for 90 days before and after first orlistat prescription.
Nearly three fourths of transplant patients with refractory infections responded to treatment with banked, virus-specific T-cells.
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), and adenovirus (ADV) infections are often life threatening in immunocompromised patients who undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. When these infections in such patients become refractory to commonly used antiviral drugs, infusion of virus-specific T-cells might be beneficial.
Dabigatran Bleeding Complications Are Not More Common than Expected
Dabigatran is safer than warfarin, and reporting bias explains high numbers of reported complications.
Clarifying Cortisol Metabolism in Critically Ill Patients: Complicated and Somewhat Less Confusing
Critically ill patients had increased production and decreased clearance of cortisol.
Add Antibiotics When Admitting Patients for COPD Exacerbations
A Cochrane review supports use of antibiotics in managing hospitalized patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations.
A substantial percentage of hospitalists believe their workloads lead to unsafe practices.
Although much has been made of the association between resident physician workload and medical errors, little is known about the effects of attending physician workload on patient safety. Researchers surveyed 890 self-identified hospitalists about the effect of physician workload (defined as the number of patient encounters per shift) during daytime hours.
