ABSTRACT
Background: Anaemia and transfusions are frequent in critically ill patients and there are avoidable causes such as routine laboratory tests. Patients and methods: Descriptive study during one continuous week including patients over 18-years old in a medical-surgical ICU. Results: 18 patients were included during a week in 12 beds in our unit, median age 62,5 years, 50% male. Median daily blood loss was 35ml, 45% in laboratory samples and 27% related to renal replacement therapy. 3 patients required 1 transfusion of red blood cells. Conclusions: There is a pattern of continuous blood loss in critically ill patients, primarily in routine laboratory tests. (AU)
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Adult , Middle Aged , Aged , Hemorrhage/etiology , Intensive Care Units , Blood Transfusion , Hemorrhage/epidemiology , Anemia/complicationsABSTRACT
It is generally accepted that many human infections are biofilm-related and that sessile (biofilm-grown) cells are highly resistant against antimicrobial agents. Propionibacterium acnes plays a role in the pathogenesis of acne vulgaris, a common disorder of the pilosebaceous follicles and it has been suggested that P. acnes cells residing within the follicles grow as a biofilm. Although P. acnes biofilms have not been observed directly in the pilosebaceous unit, the observation that P. acnes readily forms biofilm in vitro as well as on various medical devices in vivo, combined with the high resistance of sessile P. acnes cells and the increased production of particular virulence factors and qourum sensing molecules in sessile cells point in this direction. In addition, in vitro and in vivo biofilm formation has also been demonstrated for other microorganisms involved in skin diseases (including Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes).
