Early Mobilization: Changing the Mindset.

BACKGROUND: Staff in the surgical intensive care unit (SICU) had several concerns about mobilizing patients receiving mechanical ventilation. OBJECTIVE: To assess and improve the mindset of SICU staff toward early mobilization of patients receiving mechanical ventilation before, 6 months after, and 1 year after implementation of early mobilization. METHODS: The Plan-Do-Study-Act model was used to guide the planning, implementation, evaluation, and interventions to change the mindset and practice of SICU staff in mobilizing patients receiving mechanical ventilation. Interventions to overcome barriers to early mobilization included interdisciplinary collaboration, multimodal education, and operational changes. The mindset of the SICU staff toward early mobilization of patients receiving mechanical ventilation was assessed by using a survey questionnaire distributed 2 weeks before, 6 months after, and 1 year after implementation of early mobilization. RESULTS: The median score on 6 of 7 survey questions changed significantly from before, to 6 months after, to 1 year after implementation, indicating a change in the mindset of SICU staff toward early mobilization of patients receiving mechanical ventilation. The SICU staff agreed that most patients receiving mechanical ventilation are able to get out of bed safely with coordination among personnel and that early mobilization of intubated patients decreases length of stay and decreases occurrence of ventilator-associated pneumonia, deep vein thrombosis, and skin breakdown. CONCLUSIONS: SICU interdisciplinary team collaboration, multimodal education, and operational support contribute to removing staff bias against mobilizing patients receiving mechanical ventilation.

Pancreatic retransplantation is associated with poor allograft survival: an update of the United Network for Organ Sharing database.

UNLABELLED: The aim of the study was to assess outcomes of pancreas retransplantation versus primary pancreas transplantation. METHODS: Data from the United Network for Organ Sharing database on all adult (age, ≥18 years) subjects who received pancreas and kidney-pancreas transplants between 1996 and 2012 were analyzed (n = 20,854). The subjects were analyzed in the following 2 groups: retransplant (n = 1149) and primary transplant (n = 19,705). RESULTS: Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated significantly different patient survival (P < 0.0001) and death-censored graft survival (P < 0.0001) between the primary transplant versus retransplant subjects. Allograft survival was significantly poorer in the retransplantation group. Patient survival was greater in the retransplant group. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our study differ from previous studies, which showed similar allograft survival in primary and secondary pancreas transplants. Further studies may elucidate specific patients who will benefit from retransplantation. At the present time, it would appear that pancreas retransplantation is associated with poor graft survival and that retransplantation should not be considered for all patients with primary pancreatic allograft failure.

The "Fistula VAC," a technique for management of enterocutaneous fistulae arising within the open abdomen: report of 5 cases.

BACKGROUND: Management of intestinal fistulae in open abdominal wounds remains a significant clinical challenge for those caring for patients surviving damage control abdominal operations. Breaking the cycle of tissue inflammation, infection, and sepsis, resulting from leakage of enteric contents, should be a major goal in the approach to these complex patients. We describe a technique utilizing vacuum assisted closure (VAC) which achieves control of enteric flow from fistulae in open abdominal wounds. METHODS: The fistula-VAC is fashioned from standard sponge supplies, negative pressure pumps, and ostomy appliances. The fistula-VAC was changed every three days prior to split thickness skin grafting, and every five days following grafting. RESULTS: Five patients underwent application of the fistula-VAC. All patients had complete diversion of enteric contents. This enteric diversion allowed for successful skin grafting in all patients. CONCLUSION: Application of the fistula-VAC should be considered a useful option in treating patients with intestinal fistulae in open abdominal wounds.