June 22, 2022
New internists choosing to be hospitalists
A study finding that inpatient practice was the overwhelming practice choice of recently certified general internal medicine physicians highlights problems with medical payments and training, experts said.
A text a day keeps the doctor informed
Inpatients, their caregivers, and their interns shared daily care plans and goals by texting in a med-peds pilot program.
New studies find no benefit to vitamin C or fluid restriction in sepsis
One international trial found higher 28-day mortality in ICU patients randomized to a vitamin C infusion compared to placebo, while another showed that 90-day mortality rates were similar when septic shock patients were treated with a standard or restrictive IV fluid strategy.
IV fluid bolus during intubation does not improve outcomes in the critically ill
A randomized clinical trial at 11 U.S. ICUs found no significant difference in cardiovascular (CV) collapse or death at 28 days between critically ill adults who received a 500-mL IV bolus before induction of anesthesia for tracheal intubation and those who did not.
New tool uses NT-proBNP plus clinical characteristics to diagnosis acute heart failure
The accuracy of using guideline-recommended thresholds of N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) alone to diagnose acute heart failure varied by patient age and other characteristics, including body mass index and renal impairment, a study found.
Pharmacist workload linked to worse outcomes in ICU patients with complex med regimens
Patients with complex medication regimens had increases in mortality risk and ICU length of stay in a retrospective study. They also received more interventions from pharmacists, but a higher patient-to-pharmacist ratio was associated with fewer of these interventions.