Active clinical trials for "Critical Illness"

This is an open mono-centre randomised controlled trial performed at the Medical University Graz including a treatment visit (V1). In the treatment visit (V1) after admittance to the ICU arterial blood glucose values will be monitored and either the software-algorithm eMPC will be used to adjust the infusion rate of intravenously administered human soluble insulin to normalise arterial blood glucose or routine treatment will be used to establish tight glycaemic control. The treatment visit will last for 72 hours. The primary hypothesis of the study is that blood glucose control by the eMPC algorithm is not inferior compared to the implemented routine protocol.

Many survivors of the intensive care unit (ICU) suffer from persistent symptoms of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this study, the investigators will test the impact of mindfulness to address this distress.

The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of intravenous acetaminophen to placebo on body temperature and hemodynamic (heart rate and blood pressure) responses in febrile critically ill adult patients. There are limited data to explain the variable and unpredictable antipyretic and hemodynamic response to acetaminophen in febrile ICU patients. The complex pathophysiology of critically ill patients, co-morbid conditions, the effect of multiple pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic care interventions, and/or the potential interferences with absorption of enteral or rectal formulations may be related to variations in the antipyretic response to acetaminophen. It is necessary for clinicians to have a better understanding of the therapy response and potential adverse effects of this commonly administered medication, especially the recently available IV formulation, in critically ill patients. Further research of the antipyretic response to acetaminophen in critically ill patients is warranted to inform evidence-based practice guidelines for fever management. Further randomized, placebo-controlled studies of hemodynamic responses to IV acetaminophen are also warranted. Primary Hypothesis: There is a significant reduction in time-weighted average core body temperature over 4 hours after administration of IV acetaminophen compared to placebo in febrile critically ill patients. Secondary Hypotheses: There is a significant reduction in time-weighted average heart rate over 4 hours after administration of IV acetaminophen compared to placebo in febrile critically ill patients. There is a significant reduction in time-weighted mean arterial pressure over 4 hours after administration of IV acetaminophen compared to placebo in febrile critically ill patients. Adult patients with fever (≥ 38.3ºCentigrade/101ºFarenheit) in the intensive care unit will be screened for eligibility and enrolled after informed consent. Patients will be randomized to receive IV acetaminophen 1 gram or normal saline 100 mLs. Body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure will be measured at baseline and during the 4 hours post study drug administration.

The Use of sedative drugs in intensive care is widespread. A cohort study conducted in Australia and New Zealand in 2010 revealed a high prevalence of deep sedation within the first 48 hours of mechanical ventilation which was independently linked to prolonged ventilation, hospital and 180 days mortality. Clinical practice is moving towards the use of lighter levels of sedation. Recent RCTs in Europe (JAMA 2012) and previous RCTs (JAMA 2009) supports growing evidence that dexmedetomidine facilitates rousable sedation, shortens ventilation time and attenuates delirium when compared to midazolam and propofol. The investigators confirmed in a pilot study the feasibility, efficacy and safety of a process of care known as Early Goal Directed Sedation (EGDS) that delivers: Early randomization after intubation or arrival in the ICU (intubated). Early Adequate analgesia after randomization. Goal directed sedation titrated to achieve light sedation. Dexmedetomidine based algorithm as the primary sedative agent with avoidance of benzodiazepines. The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of Early Goal Directed Sedation when compared to standard care sedation in critically ill patients. The study hypothesis is that Early Goal-Directed Sedation (EGDS), compared to standard care sedation, reduces 90-day all-cause mortality in critically ill patients who require mechanical ventilation.

This is a study of plasma HBP -levels of a previously published trial of G-CSF in critically ill patients (Pettila et al. Critical Care Medicine 2000). The original study was a prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of filgrastim in patients with acute respiratory failure requiring intubation. In this substudy, the investigators evaluated the effect of filgrastim on HBP -concentrations in critically ill patients.

Background: Every year 30,000 Danish patients are admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICU), accounting for 2-3% of all patients in hospital and 30% of the yearly hospital expenditure. The mortality in the ICU is 12.7 % and the 30-day mortality is 21.2 % according to the national Danish Intensive Care Database. Through many years, the standard care has been to use continuous sedation of critically ill patients during me-chanical ventilation. However, recent research indicates that it is beneficial to reduce the sedation level in these patients. A randomised trial found that continuous sedation with a daily wake-up trial compared to continuous sedation reduced the time on me-chanical ventilation and the length of stay in the intensive care unit. Further, a ran-domised trial comparing continuous sedation with a daily wake-up trial to no sedation found that patients in the non-sedated group needed mechanical ventilation for a shorter time and had a shorter length of stay in the ICU and in the hospital. The trial also indicated a beneficial effect on mortality, however the trial was not a priori de-signed or powered with respect to mortality. No randomised trial has been published comparing sedation with no sedation, a priori powered to have all-cause mortality as primary outcome. Objective: To assess the benefits and harms of non-sedation versus sedation with a daily wake-up trial in critically ill patients in ICU. Design: The NONSEDA trial is an investigator-initiated, randomised, clinical, parallel-group, multinational, superiority trial designed to include 700 patients from at least six ICUs in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Inclusion criteria: Mechanically ventilated patients with expected duration of me-chanical ventilation > 24 hours. Exclusion criteria: non-intubated patients, patients with severe head trauma, coma at admission or status epilepticus, patients treated with therapeutic hypothermia, patients with PaO2/FiO2<9 where sedation might be necessary to ensure sufficient oxygenation or place the patient in prone position. Experimental intervention: Non-sedation supplemented with pain management during mechanical ventilation. Control intervention: Sedation with a daily wake-up trial. The primary hypothesis is that non-sedation compared to sedation and a daily wake-up trial will reduce mortality. The secondary hypotheses are that non-sedation compared to sedation and a daily wake-up trial will: Reduce the incidence of a composite outcome of death, acute myocardial in-farction (AMI), stroke, pulmonary embolism and other thromboembolic events. Reduce the number of organ failures. Increase the days alive without mechanical ventilation. Increase the days alive outside the ICU. Increase the days alive outside the hospital. Outcomes: The primary outcome is all-cause mortality at 90 days. Secondary out-comes are time to death in the trial period, the frequency of the trombo-embolic com-plications, acute renal failure, days alive without mechanical ventilation, days alive outside the ICU and hospital. Explorative outcomes are mortality at 28 days, organ failure and coma-free, delirium-free days. Trial size: The investigators will include 700 participants (2 x 350) in order to detect or reject 25% relative risk reduction in mortality with a type I error risk of 5% and a type II error risk of 20% (power at 80%).

A single blind randomized controlled trial (the MoVe ICU study) will be conducted to evaluate the effects on critical patients on invasive mechanical ventilation of early mobilization with a cycle ergometer.

To evaluate the feasibility of conducting a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the efficacy of early in-bed cycling in addition to usual care physiotherapy, compared to usual care physiotherapy, on functional recovery in critically ill children.

Acute respiratory failure (ARF) is the leading reason for ICU admission in immunocompromised patients. Usual oxygen therapy involves administering low-to-medium oxygen flows through a nasal cannula or mask [with or without a bag and with or without the Venturi system] to achieve SpO2≥95%. Oxygen therapy may be combined with non-invasive ventilation [NIV] providing both end-expiratory positive pressure and pressure support. However, in a recent trial by our group, non-invasive ventialtion [NIV] was not superior over oxygen without NIV. High-flow nasal oxygen [HFNO] therapy is a focus of growing attention as an alternative to standard oxygen therapy. By providing warmed and humidified gas, HFNO allows the delivery of higher flow rates [of up to 60 L/min] via nasal cannula devices, with Fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) values of nearly 100%. Physiological benefits of HFNO consist of higher and constant FiO2 values, decreased work of breathing, nasopharyngeal washout leading to improved breathing-effort efficiency, and higher positive airway pressures associated with better lung recruitment. Clinical consequences of these physiological benefits include alleviation of dyspnoea and discomfort, decreases in tachypnoea and signs of respiratory distress, a diminished need for intubation in patients with severe hypoxemia, and decreased mortality in unselected patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure However, although preliminary data establish the feasibility and safety of this technique, HFNO has never been properly evaluated in immunocompromised patients. Thus, this project aims at demonstrating that HFNO is superior to low/medium-flow (standard) oxygen, minimising day-28 mortality

determination of the effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of simvastatin(Zocor 40 mg) plus standard therapy (SSCG)versus standard therapy alone in critically ill septic patient from the societal perspective over one year.