No abstract

Acinetobacter infections are highly prevalent in the ICU, with medical patients being more susceptible to lung infections, particularly late-onset VAP. The early and appropriate selection of antibiotics is the most important determinant of survival among these patients.

Renal replacement therapy in intensive care units (ICUs) varies globally and is dependent on medical and non-medical factors. We performed a retrospective analysis of patients initiated on dialysis in an ICU. Patient and clinical characteristics, cause of kidney injury, laboratory parameters, hemodialysis characteristics, and survival were reviewed. Acute physiological and chronic health (APACHE II) score was use to study the sickness profile. A total of 92 patients underwent 525 hemodialysis sessions. There were 60 male and 32 female patients. The mean age of the patients was 56.5 ± 16 years. The cause of acute kidney injury included sepsis 64, cardiac 7, malaria 7, postoperative 4, trauma 3, poisoning 2, and others 4. Vasopressors were used in 75% and mechanical ventilation was used in 74 (82%) of the cases. APACHE II score was 22.3 + 7.4. The mean creatinine level was 3.6 + 3.7 mg/dl. The duration of dialysis was less than 4 h in 324 (61.2%) sessions and greater than 6 h in 118 (22.5%) sessions. The percentage of 30-day survival was 30%. Intermittent hemodialysis customized to renal support needs of ICU patients is an appropriate option in resource-limited settings.

Background:Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is a common cause of epilepsy in developing countries. In order to plan and implement prevention programs, it is essential to study the awareness of NCC.Objective:To study the awareness of NCC among patients with NCC and compare with age- and gender-matched controls without NCC.Setting and Design:Hospital based case–control study.Materials and Methods:Two hundred and fourteen subjects were studied (109 NCC patients, and 105 age- and gender-matched controls without NCC). The participants were selected from neurology and medical wards of a tertiary referral hospital in northwest India. They were interviewed by trained medical interns using a questionnaire.Results:64.2% of the NCC patients and 19% of control group had heard about NCC (P < 0.001). Knowledge regarding organ affected by NCC in the NCC group was 61.4% and in the control group was 80% (P = 0.09). Only 12.9% of the NCC group and none in the control group identified tape worm as a causative agent for NCC (P = 0.092). Negative effects of NCC on marriage and social life were more often cited by the NCC group but in the control group it was towards education (P = 0.004).Conclusions:The awareness of NCC was poor in both the groups. Educational programs are needed to improve the awareness about NCC among the patients and the public.