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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Study links mechanical ventilation with long-term disability

Every so often a study is performed to confirm what we already know.  The most recent one shows that "Mechanical Ventilation Linked With Long-term Disability."

This was another study presented at the 2015 American Thoracic Society Conference in Denver.  The study followed 391 patients who spent at least one week on a ventilator in a critical care unit.  The study showed that the readmission rate for all these patients was 36-43%.

Patients who were the oldest (in this study 44-66) and who spent the longest ICU stays were the most likely
to have bad outcomes after discharge, which included 29% being readmitted, and some passing away. All of these older patients exhibited severe impairments in daily activities, which included bathing, dressing, and climbing stairs.

This is yet more proof of the importance of all those involved in the care of patients placed on ventilators, including those who sit in offices, working together toward creating policies and procedures focused on getting patients off ventilators as soon as possible.

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