Gunshot and stab wounds in France: descriptive study from a national trauma registry.

PURPOSE: Severe trauma is a major problem worldwide. In France, blunt trauma (BT) is predominant and few studies are available on penetrating trauma (PT). The purpose of this study was to perform a descriptive analysis of severe gunshot (GSW) and stab wounds (SW) in patients who were treated in French trauma centers. METHODS: Retrospective study on prospectively collected data in a national trauma registry. All adult (> 15 years) trauma patients primarily admitted in 1 of the 17 trauma centers members of the Traumabase between January 2015 to December 2018 were included. Data from patients who had a PT were compared with those who had suffered a BT over the same period. Due to the known differences between GSW and SW, sub-group analyses on data from GSW, SW and BT were also performed. RESULTS: 8128 patients were included. Twelve percent of the study group had a PT. The main mechanism of PT was SW (68.1%). Five hundred and eighty patients with PT (59.4%) required surgery within the first 24 h. Severe hemorrhage was more frequent in penetrating traumas (11.2% vs. 7.8% p < 0.001). Hospital mortality following PT was 8.9% vs 11% for blunt trauma (p = 0.047). Among PT the mortality after GSW was ten times higher than after SW (23.8% vs 2%). CONCLUSION: This work is the largest study to date that has specifically focused on GSW and SW in France, and will help improving knowledge in managing such patients in our country.

Choosing the Right Antifungal Agent in ICU Patients.

Fungi are responsible for around 20% of microbiologically documented infections in intensive care units (ICU). In the last decade, the incidence of invasive fungal infections (IFI), including candidemia, has increased steadily because of increased numbers of both immunocompromised and ICU patients. To improve the outcomes of patients with IFI, intensivists need to be aware of the inherent challenges. This narrative review summarizes the features of routinely used treatments directed against IFI in non-neutropenic ICU patients, which include three classes of antifungals: polyenes, azoles, and echinocandins. ICU patients' pathophysiological changes are responsible for deep changes in the pharmacokinetics of antifungals. Moreover, drug interactions affect the response to antifungal treatments. Consequently, appropriate antifungal dosage is a challenge under these special conditions. Dosages should be based on renal and liver function, and serum concentrations should be monitored. This review summarizes recent guidelines, focusing on bedside management.