Preparing for the Sickest Patients With 2009 Influenza A(H1N1)
- Douglas B. White, MD, MAS;
- Derek C. Angus, MD, MPH
- Author Affiliations: Department of Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dr Angus is also a Contributing Editor, JAMA.
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
- KEYWORDS:
- CANADA
- CRITICAL CARE
- DISEASE OUTBREAKS
- EXTRACORPOREAL MEMBRANE OXYGENATION
- INFLUENZA A VIRUS, H1N1 SUBTYPE
- INFLUENZA, HUMAN
- INTENSIVE CARE
- LIFE SUPPORT CARE
- MEXICO
- MORTALITY
- PATIENT CARE PLANNING
- PUBLIC HEALTH
- RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME, ACUTE
- SEVERITY OF ILLNESS INDEX
- WORLD HEALTH
Published online October 12, 2009 (doi:10.1001/jama.2009.1539).
Despite an enormous global investment in preparing for the reemergence of 2009 influenza A(H1N1), preparations proceeded largely without empirical data about the nature and severity of disease. This paucity of data is particularly problematic for clinicians in intensive care units (ICUs), who will shoulder a heavy burden for the clinical response to H1N1. In this issue of JAMA, 3 reports provide data that begin to fill this empirical void.
Domínguez-Cherit and colleagues1 conducted an observational study of 58 patients admitted to 6 ICUs in Mexico City with H1N1-related disease during the initial outbreak in spring 2009. Kumar and colleagues2 conducted a similar study of 168 critically ill patients in 38 Canadian ICUs. There were striking similarities in the main findings. Patients tended to be relatively healthy adolescents and young adults who developed a brief prodromal illness followed by rapidly progressive respiratory …
