Renal pharmacology
Pearls • The kidney is the primary elimination pathway for the majority of medications. Thus, understanding appropriate dosing for patients in acute and chronic renal impairment is imperative to avoid…
RHEUMATOLOGY
Biology of the stress response
Pearls • The stress response is a universal, stereotypical, and integrated neurogenic, endocrine, inflammatory, and metabolic systems response with multiple feed-forward and feed-backward modulation signaling designed to maximize host survival….
Progress towards precision medicine in critical illness
Pearls • The goal of precision medicine in the context of critical care is for treatment strategies to be developed that take into account the variability seen between individuals. •…
Pediatric renal transplantation
Pearls • Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for children with end-stage renal disease; children have high priority in the deceased donor allocation policy. • Upon arrival in the…
Mechanical ventilation and respiratory care
Pearls • Modern respiratory care requires a major institutional commitment in resource allocation for state-of the-art management of the pediatric patient requiring mechanical ventilation. • A comprehensive and unified approach…
Neurologic assessment and monitoring
Pearls • Much of the practice of brain-directed critical care in children is empiric, but studies in traumatic brain injury show that protocol-directed care with multidisciplinary teams in the intensive…
Structure, function, and development of the nervous system
Pearls • In humans, general central nervous system anatomy is established by birth. However, the brain undergoes substantial postnatal development, including changes in synaptic density and dendritic arborization, maturation of…
Status epilepticus
Pearls • A seizure is a paroxysmal central nervous system disorder resulting from excessive hypersynchronous discharge of cortical neurons. • Status epilepticus is a common pediatric neurologic emergency that requires…
Critical care considerations for common neurosurgical conditions
Pearls • Hydrocephalus is a common brain disease characterized by a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid within the brain, causing elevated intracranial pressure. Untreated hydrocephalus can be a medical emergency, requiring…
Acid-base disorders
Pearls • Abnormalities in acid-base balance should be anticipated in all critically ill children due to their underlying disease or intensive care unit therapy and should be monitored closely. •…
