The book covers vigorously debated controversial topics in the field of critical care medicine over the years. It provides the reader with a balanced approach and guidance based on historical and currently available evidence in dealing with contentious clinical scenarios. The book reviews the most relevant, contemporaneous evidence on each topic and provides practical guidelines for clinical practice.

The book includes chapters that follow a structured approach to controversies related to specific organ systems. The topics covered provide a summary of the most relevant, practice-changing studies in the field of critical care medicine. Each topic describes the basic applied physiology, points of controversy, the evidence base, and summarizes the key points at the end. It includes brief description of landmark studies on each controversial topic.

The book serves as an important clinical guide to practitioners of critical care medicine when confronted with challenging clinical scenarios. Besides, it is a useful source of information to postgraduate trainees in various medical specialties. The topics addressed are among the most widely discussed during postgraduate examinations. It is also relevant for practitioners in general medicine and specialized areas of practice, including pulmonology (respiratory medicine), cardiology, neurology, nephrology, gastroenterology, and surgical specialties.

Addresses key areas in the practice of critical care medicine that are hotly debated Offers clarity on controversies with differing viewpoints in dealing with critically ill patients Describes basic physiology, underlines the controversies, and evaluates updated evidence

Autorentext
Dr. Jose Chacko, MD, DA, DNB, EDIC, MBA, graduated in medicine and completed post-graduation in anesthesia from Medical College, Trivandrum, India. He underwent advanced training in critical care medicine from leading hospitals in Australia and worked as a consultant in anesthesia and critical care with the National Health Services in the United Kingdom. He has completed the European Diploma in Intensive Care (EDIC) from the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) and currently works as a senior consultant in critical care medicine at Narayana Health, Bangalore, India. A renowned teacher and academician, he is a leading practitioner and teacher of critical care medicine in India. He has many publications in peer-reviewed journals and contributed to text books in critical care and emergency medicine. He contributes regularly to academic meetings in critical care medicine. Dr. Chacko runs a blog site (criticalcareblogspot.com) and creates podcasts (critcareedu.com.au) that address provocative topics in critical care medicine. Dr. Swapnil Pawar, MD, FCICM, EDIC, completed his post-graduation in anesthesia in 2010 from the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, India. He is a fellow of the College of Intensive Care Medicine (FCICM), Australia and New Zealand and has also completed his European Diploma in Intensive Care (EDIC) with the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM). He is currently working as a consultant intensivist at the St. George Hospital in Sydney and is the coordinator for Innovation in Intensive Care. He is the chair of the education committee of the Australia and New Zealand Intensive Care Society (ANZICS). He has a keen interest in simulation and medical education and is a certified simulation healthcare educator (CHSE) with the Society of Simulation in Healthcare (SSH). He is the host and producer of six educational podcast series andruns his educational website Critical Care Education (www.critcareedu.com.au). He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in the field of cognitive load theory and has delivered numerous oral and posters presentations at international meetings. He is a trained mediator and enjoys grooming young talent as a captain of St George district cricket club metro team. Professor Ian Seppelt, FANZCA, FCICM, graduated in medicine from the University of Sydney, Australia. He is a senior specialist in intensive care medicine at Nepean Hospital, University of Sydney, professor of anesthesia at Macquarie University, and professorial fellow at The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney. He has more than 100 peer-reviewed international publications and has delivered numerous invited presentations at international meetings. He is a past executive member of the ANZICS Clinical Trials Group and lead investigator for SuDDICU (Australia) for which he received a National Health and Medical Research Council Research Excellence Award in 2015. He is on the management committees for several clinical trials including SuDDICU, SPICE-IV, and REMAP-CAP. He chairs the Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) and is a member of various data safety monitoring boards. He is a medical advisor to Equestrian Australia and assistant groom and transport technician for his wife and children when they are competing. Dr. Gagan Brar, MD, DNB, EDIC, IDCCM, graduated in medicine and completed post-graduation in anesthesia from Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India. She underwent training in critical care medicine at Manipal Hospital and Fortis Hospital, Bangalore, India. She is a fellow of the National Board of Examinations in critical care medicine and has completed the European diploma in intensive care (EDIC) with the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM). She currently works as a consultant in critical care medicine, Aster RV Hospital,

Inhalt
Part 1: Respiratory Support in the Critically Ill.- Oxygenation Targets in the ICU: Conservative or Liberal?.- The Hypoxic Drive, Supplemental Oxygen, and Hypercapnia.- Non-invasive Respiratory Support in Acute Hypoxemic Respiratory Failure.- PEEP Titration by the Bedside: How Do we Set it Right?.- Do Vigorous Spontaneous Respiratory Efforts Lead to Patient Self-inflicted Lung Injury (P-SILI)?.- Prone Ventilation in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome.- Neuromuscular Blocking Agents in Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: Benefit or Harm?.- Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia: Newer Definitions, Controversies, and Perspectives.- Lung-protective Ventilation and Hypercapnia: How Much is Permissible?.- Tracheostomy in the ICU: Early or Late?.- Diaphragmatic Dysfunction in Critical Illness.- Weaning and Liberation from Mechanical Ventilation: Is my Patient Ready?.- When to Decannulate a Tracheostomy?.- Thrombolytic Therapy in Acute Pulmonary Embolism.- Part 2: Shock and Circulatory Support.- Corticosteroids in Sepsis: The Enduring Debate.- Hyperlactatemia in Critical Illness: Time for Reappraisal?.- Permissive Hypotension in Severe Trauma.- Assessment of Volume Responsiveness in the Critically Ill.- The Strategy of "De-resuscitation" in the Critically Ill.- Where Do We Stand with Early Goal-Directed Therapy in Sepsis?.- Normal Saline Versus Balanced Crystalloids Revisited.- Liberal Fluid Resuscitation vs. Early Vasopressors in Septic Shock.- Epinephrine and Outcomes Following Cardiac Arrest.- Targeted Temperature Management in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.- Part 3: Acute Kidney Injury and Renal Replacement Therapy.- Augmented Renal Clearance in the Critically Ill.- Renal Replacement Therapy in Acute Kidney Injury: Is Timing all-Important?.- Optimizing the Dose of Renal Replacement Therapy.- Renal Replacement Therapy in The Critically Ill: Continuous vs. Prolonged Intermittent Therapies.- Part 4: Neurocritical Care.- Does Intracranial Pressure Monitoring Help in Severe Traumatic Brain Injury?.- Therapeutic Hypothermia in Traumatic Brain Injury.- Decompressive Craniectomy in Traumatic Brain Injury.- Optimzation of Osmotherapy in Cerebral Edema.- How Much Sedation in Critically Ill Patients on Mechanical Ventilation?.- Delirium in the Intensive Care Unit: Are we Paying Enough Attention?.- Cl…