[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Anaesthesia and ICU](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/) › Critical care (ICU) # Critical care (ICU) Lines and sedation in the ICU, shock and vasopressors by mechanism, mechanical ventilation, organ support and nutrition. 27 pages ## Crisis - [**Advanced life support in hospital** When the heart stops in hospital, the team gives good chest compressions, shocks the heart if…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/advanced-life-support-in-hospital/) - [**Intra-abdominal hypertension and abdominal compartment syndrome** When pressure inside the belly rises too high, it squeezes the organs and blood vessels and can…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/intra-abdominal-hypertension-and-abdominal-compartment-syndrome/) - [**Ventilator alarms, auto-PEEP and the DOPE approach** What to do when a ventilated patient suddenly gets worse or the ventilator alarms: check the…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/ventilator-alarms-auto-peep-and-the-dope-approach/) ## Concept - [**Analgesia and sedation in the ICU: targets and scales** ICU patients need relief from pain and distress, but too much sedation keeps them longer on the…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/analgesia-and-sedation-in-the-icu-targets-and-scales/) - [**Capnography: the waveform and what it tells you** A capnograph draws the carbon dioxide of each breath as a wave, showing at once whether a…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/capnography-the-waveform-and-what-it-tells-you/) - [**Care after cardiac arrest** After the heart restarts, the ICU protects the brain and heart, finds the cause of the arrest…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/care-after-cardiac-arrest/) - [**Catheter-related bloodstream infection: prevention and response** Germs can travel along a central line into the blood; careful insertion, clean handling and…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/catheter-related-bloodstream-infection-prevention-and-response/) - [**Central lines in the ICU: choice, checks and removal** A central line is a thin tube placed in a large vein near the heart to give strong drugs and…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/central-lines-in-the-icu-choice-checks-and-removal/) - [**Delirium in the ICU: screening and prevention** Many very sick ICU patients become confused for days; regular checks find it early and simple…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/delirium-in-the-icu-screening-and-prevention/) - [**Haemodynamic monitoring: arterial line, CVP, cardiac output and lactate** Haemodynamic monitoring measures pressure, blood flow and tissue oxygen so the ICU team can tell…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/haemodynamic-monitoring-arterial-line-cvp-cardiac-output-and-lactate/) - [**Mechanical ventilation modes: volume, pressure and support** The ways a ventilator can deliver a breath: by pushing a set volume, by holding a set pressure…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/mechanical-ventilation-modes-volume-pressure-and-support/) - [**NIV and high-flow nasal oxygen in the ICU** Two ways to support breathing without a tube in the windpipe: a tight mask that gives pressure…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/niv-and-high-flow-nasal-oxygen-in-the-icu/) - [**Nutrition in the ICU: enteral first** Seriously ill patients need food; the best route is a tube into the stomach, and a vein is used…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/nutrition-in-the-icu-enteral-first/) - [**PEEP, plateau pressure and lung protection** PEEP keeps small air sacs open at the end of each breath; plateau pressure shows how hard the…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/peep-plateau-pressure-and-lung-protection/) - [**Renal replacement therapy in the ICU: when and which** When the kidneys fail in a very sick patient, a machine can clean the blood and remove extra…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/renal-replacement-therapy-in-the-icu-when-and-which/) - [**Stress-ulcer prophylaxis: who needs it** Very sick ICU patients can bleed from shallow stomach ulcers; acid-reducing medicines help those…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/stress-ulcer-prophylaxis-who-needs-it/) - [**The ICU daily bundle (FAST HUGS and similar checklists)** Each day the ICU team runs a short checklist so that simple, proven steps such as feeding, clot…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/the-icu-daily-bundle/) - [**Transfusion thresholds in the ICU** In intensive care, red cells are given only when haemoglobin falls quite low or the patient is…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/transfusion-thresholds-in-the-icu/) - [**Vasopressors and inotropes by receptor and mechanism** Vasopressors tighten blood vessels to raise blood pressure; inotropes make the heart squeeze…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/vasopressors-and-inotropes-by-receptor-and-mechanism/) - [**Ventilating ARDS: low volumes, prone position and more** How the ventilator and the patient's position are used to support badly inflamed lungs without…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/ventilating-ards-low-volumes-prone-position-and-more/) - [**Ventilator-associated pneumonia: the prevention bundle** A lung infection that can start after a patient has been on a breathing machine for some days…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/ventilator-associated-pneumonia-the-prevention-bundle/) ## Assessment - [**Brain death: clinical testing (Colombia)** Brain death means the whole brain, including the brainstem, has stopped for good; doctors…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/brain-death-clinical-testing/) - [**Fever in the ICU: an approach** A new fever in an intensive care patient can mean infection or other problems; doctors examine…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/fever-in-the-icu-an-approach/) - [**Fluid responsiveness: when more fluid helps** Before giving more fluid, the ICU team checks whether the heart will actually pump more blood…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/fluid-responsiveness-when-more-fluid-helps/) - [**Shock: a bedside approach by type** Shock means the organs are not getting enough oxygen; the team finds out why at the bedside and…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/shock-a-bedside-approach-by-type/) - [**The comatose patient in the ICU** A person in a coma cannot be woken and does not respond; doctors protect the airway, fix quick…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/the-comatose-patient-in-the-icu/) - [**Weaning and the spontaneous breathing trial** How the team checks, step by step, whether a patient is ready to breathe without the ventilator…](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/weaning-and-the-spontaneous-breathing-trial/) ## A to Z - [A](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/a/) - [B](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/b/) - [C](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/c/) - [D](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/d/) - [E](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/e/) - [F](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/f/) - [G](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/g/) - [H](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/h/) - [I](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/i/) - [L](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/l/) - [M](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/m/) - [N](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/n/) - [O](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/o/) - [P](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/p/) - [R](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/r/) - [S](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/s/) - [T](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/t/) - [V](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/v/) - [W](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/a-z/w/) [← Anaesthesia and critical care](https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/) Educational content; it does not replace supervised training, your institution's protocols or the anaesthetist's or intensivist's decision. It contains no doses and no ventilator or infusion settings. Representative model, for educational purposes only. --- Source: https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/areas/critical-care/ License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/anaesthesia/areas/critical-care/