TY - JOUR
T1 - The recent evolution of coronary care units into intensive cardiac care units
T2 - The experience of a tertiary center in Florence
AU - Valente, Serafina
AU - Lazzeri, Chiara
AU - Sori, Andrea
AU - Giglioli, Cristina
AU - Bernardo, Pasquale
AU - Gensini, Gian Franco
PY - 2007/3
Y1 - 2007/3
N2 - OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the evolution of intensive cardiac care units (ICCUs) in the third millenium by assessing the activity and the workload of our ICCU which is a Hub center, from 1 January 2004 to 30 June 2005. METHODS: Among the 1397 patients consecutively admitted to our ICCU, 40.5% came from Spokes. Patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction comprised 29.5% of the entire population: all of them were admitted to ICCU after mechanical reperfusion. RESULTS: The incidences of ventricular fibrillation (1%) and complete AV block (0.6%) are low in our patients. The most frequent complications were acute renal failure requiring renal replacement therapy (4.4%) and vascular and hemorrhagic complications (4.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Our ICCU is a post-reperfusion unit for treating complications of therapy and older and more complex patients who require more intensive care. This is why the cardiac intensivists also need to be skilled in general intensive care. In the Integrated Cardiac Network (Hub-and-Spoke model), ICCUs play a crucial role in the management of all cardiac emergencies, and in maintaining a continuous and strict interplay with Spokes, they have a prominent and unique role in the selection and early treatment of acute cardiac patients and their follow-up.
AB - OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the evolution of intensive cardiac care units (ICCUs) in the third millenium by assessing the activity and the workload of our ICCU which is a Hub center, from 1 January 2004 to 30 June 2005. METHODS: Among the 1397 patients consecutively admitted to our ICCU, 40.5% came from Spokes. Patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction comprised 29.5% of the entire population: all of them were admitted to ICCU after mechanical reperfusion. RESULTS: The incidences of ventricular fibrillation (1%) and complete AV block (0.6%) are low in our patients. The most frequent complications were acute renal failure requiring renal replacement therapy (4.4%) and vascular and hemorrhagic complications (4.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Our ICCU is a post-reperfusion unit for treating complications of therapy and older and more complex patients who require more intensive care. This is why the cardiac intensivists also need to be skilled in general intensive care. In the Integrated Cardiac Network (Hub-and-Spoke model), ICCUs play a crucial role in the management of all cardiac emergencies, and in maintaining a continuous and strict interplay with Spokes, they have a prominent and unique role in the selection and early treatment of acute cardiac patients and their follow-up.
KW - Acute myocardial infarction
KW - Hub-and-Spoke model
KW - Intensive cardiac care unit
KW - Primary coronary angioplasty
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U2 - 10.2459/JCM.0b013e32801261e3
DO - 10.2459/JCM.0b013e32801261e3
M3 - Article
C2 - 17312435
AN - SCOPUS:33847130513
VL - 8
SP - 181
EP - 187
JO - Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine
JF - Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine
SN - 1558-2027
IS - 3
ER -