Three anatomical sites are commonly used to insert central venous catheters, but insertion at each site has the potential for major complications.

Beta-lactam antibiotics (βLA) are the most commonly used antibiotics in the intensive care unit (ICU). ICU patients present many pathophysiological features that cause pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) specificities, leading to the risk of underdosage. The French Society of Pharmacology and Therapeutics (SFPT) and the French Society of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine (SFAR) have joined forces to provide guidelines on the optimization of beta-lactam treatment in ICU patients. A consensus committee of 18 experts from the two societies had the mission of producing these guidelines. The entire process was conducted independently of any industry funding. A list of questions formulated according to the PICO model (Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcomes) was drawn-up by the experts. Then, two bibliographic experts analysed the literature published since January 2000 using predefined keywords according to PRISMA recommendations. The quality of the data identified from the literature was assessed using the GRADE® methodology. Due to the lack of powerful studies having used mortality as main judgement criteria, it was decided, before drafting the recommendations, to formulate only “optional” recommendations. After two rounds of rating and one amendment, a strong agreement was reached by the SFPT-SFAR guideline panel for 21 optional recommendations and a recapitulative algorithm for care covering four areas: (i) pharmacokinetic variability, (ii) PK-PD relationship, (iii) administration modalities, and (iv) therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM). The most important recommendations regarding βLA administration in ICU patients concerned (i) the consideration of the many sources of PK variability in this population; (ii) the definition of free plasma concentration between four and eight times the Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of the causative bacteria for 100% of the dosing interval as PK-PD target to maximize bacteriological and clinical responses; (iii) the use of continuous or prolonged administration of βLA in the most severe patients, in case of high MIC bacteria and in case of lower respiratory tract infection to improve clinical cure; and (iv) the use of TDM to improve PK-PD target achievement. The experts strongly suggest the use of personalized dosing, continuous or prolonged infusion and therapeutic drug monitoring when administering βLA in critically ill patients.

Rationale: Difficult intubation in the intensive care unit (ICU) is a challenging issue. Objectives: To develop and validate a simplified score for identifying patients with difficult intubation in the ICU and to report related complications. Methods: Data collected in a prospective multicenter study from 1,000 consecutive intubations from 42 ICUs were used to develop a simplified score of difficult intubation, which was then validated externally in 400 consecutive intubation procedures from 18 other ICUs and internally by bootstrap on 1,000 iterations. Measurements and Main Results: In multivariate analysis, the main predictors of difficult intubation (incidence = 11.3%) were related to patient (Mallampati score III or IV, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, reduced mobility of cervical spine, limited mouth opening); pathology (severe hypoxia, coma); and operator (nonanesthesiologist). From the β parameter, a seven-item simplified score (MACOCHA score) was built, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.89 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.85–0.94). In the validation cohort (prevalence of difficult intubation = 8%), the AUC was 0.86 (95% CI, 0.76–0.96), with a sensitivity of 73%, a specificity of 89%, a negative predictive value of 98%, and a positive predictive value of 36%. After internal validation by bootstrap, the AUC was 0.89 (95% CI, 0.86–0.93). Severe life-threatening events (severe hypoxia, collapse, cardiac arrest, or death) occurred in 38% of the 1,000 cases. Patients with difficult intubation (n = 113) had significantly higher severe life-threatening complications than those who had a nondifficult intubation (51% vs. 36%; P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Difficult intubation in the ICU is strongly associated with severe life-threatening complications. A simple score including seven clinical items discriminates difficult and nondifficult intubation in the ICU. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT01532063).

Rationale: Although frequent, little is known about early-onset pneumonia that occurs in the postresuscitation period. Although induced hypothermia is recommended as a method of improving neurological outcome, its influence on the occurrence of early-onset pneumonia is not well defined. Objectives: To describe the incidence, risk factors, causative agents, and impact on outcome of early-onset pneumonia occurring within 3 days after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Methods: Retrospective analysis of a large cohort study of all patients successfully resuscitated after OHCA and admitted from July 2002 to March 2008 in two medical intensive care units (ICUs). Patients who presented accidental hypothermia or a known pneumonia before OHCA, or patients who died within the first 24 hours, were excluded. Measurements and Main Results: During this 6-year period, 845 patients were admitted after OHCA, and 641 consecutive patients were included. A total of 500 patients (78%) were treated with therapeutic hypothermia. In the first 3 days, 419 (65%) presented early-onset pneumonia. Multivariate analysis disclosed therapeutic hypothermia as the single independent risk factor of early-onset pneumonia (odds ratio, 1.90; 95% confidence interval, 1.28–2.80; P = 0.001). Early-onset pneumonia increased length of mechanical ventilation (5.7 ± 5.9 vs. 4.7 ± 6.2 d; P = 0.001) and ICU stay (7.9 ± 7.2 versus 6.7 ± 7.6 d; P = 0.001), but did not influence incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (P = 0.25), favorable neurologic outcome (P = 0.35), or ICU mortality (P = 0.26). Conclusions: After OHCA, therapeutic hypothermia is associated with an increased risk of early-onset pneumonia. This complication was associated with prolonged respiratory support and ICU stay, but did not significantly influence ICU mortality.

The prognosis for postcardiac arrest patients remains very bleak, not only because of anoxic-ischemic neurological damage, but also because of the "postcardiac arrest syndrome," a phenomenon often severe enough to cause death before any neurological evaluation. This syndrome includes all clinical and biological manifestations related to the phenomenon of global ischemia-reperfusion triggered by cardiac arrest and return of spontaneous circulation. The main component of the postcardiac arrest syndrome is an early but severe cardiocirculatory dysfunction that may lead to multiple organ failure and death.