Course: To Restrain or Not to Restrain: A Teachable Moment
CME Credits: 1.00
Released: 2021-12-13
A man in his 80s with hypertension and type 2 diabetes was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with acute hypoxic respiratory failure secondary to COVID-19. He experienced a protracted medical course requiring multiple intubations, complicated by ventilator-associated pneumonia and a pneumothorax necessitating chest tube placement. In total, he was intubated for 19 days.
While intubated, he frequently pulled at tubes and lines. Hospital staff had difficulty redirecting him and expressed concerns about reaching him quickly owing to respiratory isolation precautions. To address his ICU delirium, sedating medications were adjusted and adjunctive medications added. However, these changes were only moderately effective. The patient self-extubated and was reintubated on an emergency basis. Physical restraints were subsequently added.
Educational Objective
To review current knowledge about best practices and challenges in the use of restraint in patients with delirium in the intensive care unit.
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