MedEd Bytes

Bispectral Index™ monitoring

In this MedEd Bytes series, we learn about the application of BIS™ monitoring to ensure adequate depth of anesthesia for a patient under general anesthesia.

INVOS™ monitoring in the neonatal intensive care unit

In this MedEd Bytes series, we discuss the application of regional oximetry in critically ill neonatal patients.

McGRATH™ MAC video laryngoscope

The McGRATH™ MAC video laryngoscope is proven to improve first time success rate,^1,2 and potentially lessen hemodynamic response to intubation^3,4 when compared to the traditional direct visualization technique. In this MedEd Bytes series, we learn about the application of the McGRATH™ MAC video laryngoscope to improve intubation success.

NICU airway management

This concise video series offers offers one-to three-minute training  training snippets, focusing on essential topics for NICU airway management. Gain practical guidance and easy steps to optimize your use of the SonarMed™ system with our quick and informative training videos.

Out-of-hospital remote patient monitoring

Out-of-hospital remote patient monitoring is the electronic collection of patient physiological measurements (such as blood pressure, weight, heart rate, temperature, respiratory rate, or blood glucose levels) outside of traditional health care settings.⁵ The primary objective of remote patient monitoring is often earlier recognition of deterioration, mostly in patients with chronic diseases.⁶

Pulse oximetry and equitable monitoring

During the COVID-19 pandemic clinicians published several studies showing that pulse oximetry readings, which rely on light absorption technology, can overestimate arterial saturation in patients with dark skin pigmentation.^7–10 Additionally, evidence showed that these inaccuracies place patients at risk for delayed or missed treatment.⁸ While pulse oximetry bias in patients with dark skin pigmentation had been documented for decades,¹¹ these new studies provided additional information on the clinical significance of racial bias in pulse oximetry. This, in turn, has triggered a new discussion of approaches to evaluate the performance of pulse oximeters.¹²

Remote wearable monitoring

In this MedEd Bytes series, we assess the challenges impacting hospitals and healthcare practitioners today and discuss how wearables, remote monitoring, and continuous monitoring can help.

Ventilator associated events

The ventilator associated event (VAE) surveillance criteria is designed to capture infectious and non-infectious complications associated with mechanical ventilation.¹³  It is estimated that around 30% of ventilated patients in the ICU develop VAE.1 VAEs can lead to serious complications, including death.¹³

In the following bytes, we will review how VAE are diagnosed, outline the types of VAE, discuss the methods for preventing VAE, and consider the methods for VAE surveillance.