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Tracheotomy has long been performed outside of intensive care medicine. In modern medicine, it has a firm place in the management of critically ill and emergency care patients as well as in cancer surgery of the head and neck, the care of long-term ventilated patients, patients with swallowing disorders, and neurological diseases. The indication, technique, and timing of tracheotomy are very different for the various diseases. This article provides an overview of the different indications, surgical techniques, and timing of tracheotomy in modern intensive care medicine., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: The positive impact of pharmaceutical care in improving medication safety is considered proven. Little is known about the economic benefit of clinical pharmaceutical services in Germany., Objective: In 2020, a pilot project was started at the Ernst von Bergmann Hospital to introduce ward-based clinical pharmacists in intensive care medicine, also in order to determine the economic benefit of the medication management offered., Methods: By a team of experienced intensive care physicians and clinical pharmacists on the basis of a consensus principle, each pharmaceutical intervention (PI) was assigned a probability score (Nesbit probability score) with which an adverse drug event (ADE) would have occurred. Assuming that each ADE results in an increased length of stay, the costs of intensive care treatment/day were used as potential savings. The model thereby combines the findings of two international publications to enable an economic analysis of pharmaceutical services., Results: During the study period, 177 pharmaceutical interventions were evaluated and corresponding probability scores for the occurrence of ADE were determined. From this, annual savings of € 80,000 through avoided costs were calculated., Conclusion: In this project, the economic benefit of pharmaceutical services in intensive care medicine was proven. Ward-based clinical pharmacists are now an integral part of the intensive care treatment team at the Ernst von Bergmann Hospital., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

About 50% of all critically ill patients develop acute kidney injury (AKI) and approximately 15% receive renal replacement therapy (RRT). Although RRT is frequently used in intensive care units in Germany, it is currently unknown which RRT procedures are available, which qualification the involved staff has, which anticoagulation strategies are used and how RRT doses are prescribed. To investigate quality and structural characteristics of the performance of RRT in intensive care units throughout Germany, the German Interdisciplinary Society of Intensivists (Deutsche Interdisziplinäre Vereinigung für Intensiv- und Notfallmedizin [DIVI]) performed an inquiry among their members. A total of 897 members participated in the survey in which practical aspects were queried. In 69.1% of the cases, RRT was performed in hospitals with more than 400 beds and in 74.5% in university hospitals or other primary care hospitals. Furthermore, 93.3% of clinics are equipped with continuous and 75.8% with intermittent renal replacement devices. In 91.9%, indication for initiation of RRT was performed by trained physicians specialized in intensive care medicine or nephrologists. Intermittent as well as continuous modalities are both present in three-quarters of cases, which allows for individualized therapy. However, the documentation of dialysis dose needs to be improved., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Fluid balance is crucial in critically ill patients because mechanisms to counteract fluid dysbalances are limited. Therefore, an extremely important task of ICU staff is to assess and maintain fluid status. Fluid overload has been shown to have deleterious consequences for patients. Infusion fluids may be divided into colloid and crystalloid solutions. Within the crystalloids, balanced solutions have been shown to be superior over 0.9% saline with respect to acidosis, acute kidney injury, and mortality. The most widespread used colloid is hydroyethyl starch (HES). Compared to crystalloids, HES has a much greater volume effect. Despite this advantage, precautions must be undertaken with the use of HES. Side effects such as anaphylactic reactions and acute kidney injury are not uncommon; thus, critically ill patients and those at risk of kidney dysfunction should only receive HES preparations after careful consideration., (© 2021. Springer Medizin Verlag GmbH, ein Teil von Springer Nature.)

Renal replacement therapy is after mechanical ventilation one of the most important and frequently used organ replacement therapies in daily routine intensive care practice. In contrast to mechanical ventilation, quality standards for renal replacement therapy are less well known and defined. In this position paper of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine, we describe quality standards of renal replacement procedures in order to improve therapy of patients with severe acute kidney injury.

There is a widespread use of biomarkers in modern intensive care. The potential benefit for the patients is, however, not fully investigated. This paper will discuss biomarkers regarding the diagnosis of infections and their potential use in antibiotic stewardship programs (ABS) in order to guide antimicrobial therapy. In the field of infections, procalcitonin (PCT) seems to be the most widespread marker. PCT is able to differentiate between inflammation and infection. Also, in the context of ABS rounds, PCT is well established.

Sepsis is still the leading cause of mortality in noncardiac intensive care units. The new definition of sepsis emphasizes the importance of organ dysfunction. The Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score is an indicator for organ dysfunction. The diagnosis of sepsis is for the most part made on clinical parameters with an altered mental status being a very sensitive indicator. Microbiological work-up is essential and two sets of blood cultures are the recommended minimum. Management includes prompt initiation of adequate antibiotic treatment and swift fluid resuscitation. Overinfusion is to be avoided as this itself can have a negative impact on patient outcome.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is an important organ failure, which has an enormous negative impact on outcome in patients with severe sepsis., Methods: In this paper, the pathophysiological causes as well as noninterventional and interventional (extracorporeal) treatment of patients with AKI and severe sepsis are described., Results: The cornerstone of noninterventional therapy is infection control and heamodynamic stabilization with fluid resuscitation and vasopressors. In patients with deteriorating AKI, extracorporeal treatment should be started early. Generally, continuous and intermittent modes are considered to be equally effective and possible. In practice, a continuous form is preferred in hemodynamically unstable patients., Discussion: The idea that AKI may easily be overcome by starting extracorporeal treatment is no longer true. AKI is much more complex. The dynamic process of the disease should be kept in mind when choosing the correct mode and dose of the extracorporeal treatment. Antibiotic dosage must be adjusted when kidney function is improving or deteriorating.