Critical Matters

Music and Critical Illness

Albumin in Critical Care

The podcast explores the appropriate use of intravenous albumin in critical care, a topic often utilized but potentially misused in intensive care units. Dr. Jeannie Callum, Director of Transfusion Medicine at Queen's University, highlights concerns about patient harm, including transfusion-associated circulatory overl...

Neurological support post-cardiac arrest

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti interviews Dr. Edilberto Amorin about neurological support for post-cardiac arrest patients in the ICU. They discuss the initial and secondary neurological injuries that occur after cardiac arrest and emphasize the importance of monitoring and managing brain oxyge...

Vasoplegia after cardiac surgery

Vasoplegia following cardiac surgery, its definition, associated risks, and management strategies are discussed. Dr. Iqbal Ratnani, an intensivist at Houston Methodist Hospital, defines vasoplegia as a loss of vascular tone and highlights its association with increased mortality. Predisposing factors such as ACE inhibi...

Tracheostomy Emergencies

The Forgotten Patient

Temporary Pacing in the ICU

The Neuro Exam

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti interviews Dr. Adam Rizvi, a neurocritical care specialist, about neurological examinations in the ICU. Dr. Rizvi explains the importance of neurological exams for bedside critical care clinicians, differentiating between identifying severe emergencies and subtle ...

Mechanical Circulatory Support - Part 2

This episode delves into the intensivist's role in managing patients with mechanical circulatory support (MCS), emphasizing the need for coordinated care between cardiology, cardiac surgery, and nursing. Dr. Bindu Akkanti, Medical Director of the Heart Failure ICU at UTHealth in Houston, highlights the importance of in...

Mechanical Circulatory Support - Part 1

Temporary mechanical circulatory support (MCS) in critical care is examined, emphasizing its growing importance for cardiogenic shock patients. Dr. Bindu Akkanti, a pulmonary and critical care physician and director at Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center, stresses the necessity for intensivists to understand MCS beyo...

Goal-Directed Mechanical Ventilation

Mechanical ventilation requires a rational, goal-directed approach to navigate the overwhelming complexity of modern ventilator technology. Dr. Eduardo Mireles-Cabodevila, Director of the Medical Intensive Care Unit at the Cleveland Clinic, advocates for a standardized taxonomy—or "ventology"—to replace confusing comme...

Life-Threatening Asthma

Life-threatening asthma in the intensive care unit requires a shift from routine outpatient management to aggressive, clinical-based interventions. Diagnosis relies on physical signs like tripod positioning and silent chest rather than peak flow measurements. Initial therapy demands continuous nebulization, intravenous...

Corticosteroids in Critical Illness Update

Conflict Resolution in Healthcare

ECMO for Respiratory Failure

Critical care of neuromuscular disorders

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti interviews Dr. Kamran Athar about the management of acute neuromuscular disorders in the ICU, focusing on Guillain-Barre Syndrome and Myasthenia Gravis. Dr. Athar provides a broad differential diagnosis for acute neuromuscular weakness, detailing conditions affect...

ARDS Respiratory Support Update

The 2023 European Society of Intensive Care Medicine guidelines provide a framework for managing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and acute hypoxemic respiratory failure. Dr. Eddy Fan emphasizes that these recommendations serve as clinical guides rather than absolute rules, prioritizing lung-protective strate...

Seizure Management in the ICU

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti interviews Dr. Brandon Foreman about the management of seizures in the intensive care unit (ICU). Dr. Foreman emphasizes the surprisingly high incidence of seizures in ICU patients, particularly non-convulsive seizures, and the importance of early diagnosis and tr...

Evaluation of Fever in the ICU Patient

Brain Death / Death by Neurologic Criteria

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti interviews Dr. David Greer about the recently published American Academy of Neurology, American Academy of Pediatrics, Child Neurology Society, and Society of Critical Care Medicine clinical guidelines for the evaluation of brain death and death by neurologic crit...