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Background Delirium is a common complication in patients in Intensive Care Units (ICU). Interventions such as mobilization are effective in the prevention and treatment of delirium, although this is usually completed during the daytime. Aim The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of mobilization in the evening to prevent and treat ICU patients from delirium by an additional mobility team over 2 weeks. Methods The design was a pilot, multi-centre, randomized, controlled trial in four mixed ICUs over a period of 2 weeks. The mobility team consisted of trained nurses and physiotherapists. Patients in the intervention group were mobilized onto the edge of the bed or more between 21.00 and 23.00. Patients in the control group received usual care. The primary outcome parameter was the feasibility of the study, measured as recruitment rate, delivery rate, and safety. Secondary outcomes were duration and incidence of delirium, mortality, duration of mechanical ventilation (MV), and hospital length of stay for 28 days follow-up, and power calculation for a full trial. Results Out of 185 patients present in the ICUs, 28.6% (n = 53) were eligible and could be recruited, of which 24.9% (n = 46, Intervention = 26, Control = 20) were included in the final analysis. In the intervention group, mobilization could be delivered in 75% (n = 54) of 72 possible occasions; mobilization-related safety events appeared in 16.7% (n = 9) without serious consequences. Secondary parameters were similar, with less delirium in the intervention group albeit not significant. With an association of Cramer's V = 0.237, a complete study reaching statistical significance would require at least 140 patients, last 6 weeks, and cost >30 000 €. Conclusions In a mixed ICU population, mobilization in the evening was feasible in one-quarter of patients with a low rate of safety events. Future trials seem to be feasible and worth conducting.

Background : Delirium is a common complication in patients on Intensive Care Units (ICU). Caring interventions such as early mobilization are effective in prevention and treatment of delirium, but are recommended during daytime. It may be effective in the night, too. Method : The aim of this study was to prove the effect of mobilization in the evening to prevent or treat ICU patients from delirium. The design was a multicentric, randomized, controlled trial in 5 mixed ICUs over a period of 2 weeks with max. 28 days follow-up. Patients in the intervention group were mobilized onto the edge of the bed or more between 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. by an additional mobilization team, following safety criteria. Patients in the control group received usual care. Primary outcome parameter was the duration of a delirium. Secondary parameters were presence of delirium, mortality, duration of mechanical ventilation (MV) and stay, feasibility, and mobilization-related complications. Results : In summary, n=69 patients could be analysed (intervention n=36, control n=33). Due to limited resources, the trial was stopped and reached 62% of targeted sample size. Mobilization in the evening did not significantly reduce duration of existing delirium, delirium presence, length of MV or days in ICU and hospital for 28 days follow-up. In an unplanned post-hoc analysis, mobilization in the evening prevented patients from delirium in the first four days (6 (16.7%) vs. 13 (39.4%), p=0.032), with a number needed to treat of 5. The intervention was feasible in 71.7% of eligible patients, with 13.6% unwanted safety events. Conclusions : In a mixed ICU population, mobilization in the evening did not show a reduction in duration of delirium, MV or length of stay, but a reduction in the incidence of early onset delirium. Mobilization between 9:00 and 11:00 pm. by an interprofessional mobilization team may prevent patients from delirium. The intervention was feasible, safe, and accepted by most patients.

In recent years delirium in the intensive care unit (ICU) has internationally become a matter of rising concern for intensive care physicians. Due to the design of highly sophisticated ventilators the practice of deep sedation is nowadays mostly obsolete. To assess a ventilated ICU patient for delirium easy to handle bedside tests have been developed which permit a psychiatric scoring. The significance of ICU delirium is equivalent to organ failure and has been proven to be an independent prognostic factor for mortality and length of ICU and hospital stay. The pathophysiology and risk factors of ICU delirium are still insufficiently understood in detail. A certain constellation of pre-existing patient-related conditions, the current diagnosis and surgical procedure and administered medication entail a higher risk for the occurrence of ICU delirium. A favored hypothesis is that an imbalance of the neurotransmitters acetylcholine and dopamine serotonin results in an unpredictable neurotransmission. Currently, the administration of neuroleptics, enforced physiotherapy, re-orientation measures and appropriate pain treatment are the basis of the therapeutic approach.

Background: Considering the complexity of diagnosis, high costs of therapy and high morbidity and mortality of systemic fungal infections, antifungal therapy of intensive care patients should follow clearly defined guidelines. We outline the impact of a standardised practice of antifungal treatment in an interdisciplinary surgical intensive care unit of a university hospital. Methods: Therapy was intended to be optimised by implementation of standardised practice guidelines supported by the clinical pharmacist. Costs for antifungal agents during a period of 18 months before and after implementation of the practice guidelines were compared, respectively. Results: The intervention was associated with a significant decrease in use of antifungal agents. Analysis of data revealed a reduction in costs by 50%. This could substantially be attributed to the implementation of the practice guidelines. Conclusion: The implementation of standardised practice guidelines for antifungal therapy in intensive care units decreased the use of selected antifungal agents and resulted in substantial reduction in expenditure on antifungal agents.

In the intensive care unit (ICU) we assessed the agreement between the delirium ratings of two independent delirium assessment methods: (a) the Confusion Assessment method for the ICU (CAM-ICU); and (b) the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist (ICDSC). Prospective, descriptive cohort study. During a 6-month period, 174 patients (mean age 62.4 ± 13.0 years) admitted to the ICU after elective surgery or after an emergency were included and assessed with both delirium assessment systems by two trained independent investigators (research person and bedside nurses) during their ICU stay or for up to 7 days after ICU admission. Patients' clinical characteristics at ICU admission day were documented. After excluding permanently unconscious patients with ≤ –4 on the Richmond Agitation Sedations scale, delirium was identified in 71 of the 174 patients (41%). The patients who were included were tested in 374 paired but researcher-independent ratings of delirium by both scoring methods. The kappa coefficient determined over 7 days of ICU stay was 0.80 (CI 95%: 0.78–0.84; p