Coronavirus (COVID-19): evidence relevant to critical care

This page provides systematic reviews most directly relevant to the management of people hospitalized with severe acute respiratory infections.

◆Fluid and vasopressor therapy

- Liberal versus conservative fluid therapy in adults and children with sepsis or septic shock
- Colloids versus crystalloids for fluid resuscitation in critically ill people
- Buffered solutions versus 0.9% saline for resuscitation in critically ill adults and children
- Vasopressors for hypotensive shock

◆Respiratory support and mechanical ventilation

- High‐flow nasal cannulae for respiratory support in adult intensive care patients
- Oxygen targets in the intensive care unit during mechanical ventilation for acute respiratory distress syndrome: a rapid review
- Early spontaneous breathing for acute respiratory distress syndrome in individuals with COVID‐19
- Airway physical examination tests for detection of difficult airway management in apparently normal adult patients
- Recruitment manoeuvres for adults with acute respiratory distress syndrome receiving mechanical ventilation
- Semi‐recumbent position versus supine position for the prevention of ventilator‐associated pneumonia in adults requiring mechanical ventilation
- Pressure‐controlled versus volume‐controlled ventilation for acute respiratory failure due to acute lung injury (ALI) or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
- High versus low positive end‐expiratory pressure (PEEP) levels for mechanically ventilated adult patients with acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome
- Lung protective ventilation strategy for the acute respiratory distress syndrome
- Daily sedation interruption versus no daily sedation interruption for critically ill adult patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation
- Care bundles for improving outcomes in patients with COVID‐19 or related conditions in intensive care – a rapid scoping review

◆Weaning mechanical ventilation

- Factors that impact on the use of mechanical ventilation weaning protocols in critically ill adults and children: a qualitative evidence‐synthesis
- Protocolized versus non‐protocolized weaning for reducing the duration of mechanical ventilation in critically ill adult patients
- Noninvasive positive‐pressure ventilation as a weaning strategy for intubated adults with respiratory failure

◆Managing hypoxaemia

- Higher versus lower fraction of inspired oxygen or targets of arterial oxygenation for adults admitted to the intensive care unit
- Prone position for acute respiratory failure in adults
- Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for critically ill adults

◆Pharmacotherapy

- Nirmatrelvir combined with ritonavir for preventing and treating COVID‐19
- Fluvoxamine for the treatment of COVID‐19
- Interventions for palliative symptom control in COVID‐19 patients
- Systemic corticosteroids for the treatment of COVID‐19
- Inhaled corticosteroids for the treatment of COVID-19
- Ivermectin for preventing and treating COVID‐19
- Remdesivir for the treatment of COVID‐19
- Colchicine for the treatment of COVID‐19
- Janus kinase inhibitors for the treatment of COVID‐19
- SARS‐CoV‐2‐neutralising monoclonal antibodies for treatment of COVID‐19
- Vitamin D supplementation for the treatment of COVID‐19: a living systematic review
- Interleukin‐6 blocking agents for treating COVID‐19: a living systematic review
- Interleukin-1 blocking agents for treating COVID‐19
- Chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine for prevention and treatment of COVID‐19
- Anticoagulants for people hospitalised with COVID‐19
- Prophylactic anticoagulants for people hospitalised with COVID‐19
- Convalescent plasma or hyperimmune immunoglobulin for people with COVID‐19: a living systematic review
- Immunonutrition for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in adults
- Antibiotics for the treatment of COVID‐19
- Short‐course versus prolonged‐course antibiotic therapy for hospital‐acquired pneumonia in critically ill adults
- Antibiotics for community‐acquired pneumonia in children
- Empiric antibiotic coverage of atypical pathogens for community‐acquired pneumonia in hospitalized adults
- Chinese herbs combined with Western medicine for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)

◆Managing delirium

- Pharmacological interventions for the treatment of delirium in critically ill adults
- Interventions for preventing intensive care unit delirium in adults

◆Nutrition in intensive care

- Enteral versus parenteral nutrition and enteral versus a combination of enteral and parenteral nutrition for adults in the intensive care unit

◆Diagnosis

- COVID‐19 and its cardiovascular effects: a systematic review of prevalence studies
- Antibody tests for identification of current and past infection with SARS‐CoV‐2
- Signs and symptoms to determine if a patient presenting in primary care or hospital outpatient settings has COVID‐19
- Thoracic imaging tests for the diagnosis of COVID‐19
- Routine laboratory testing to determine if a patient has COVID‐19

 

◆Read more information about evidence relevant to critical care on COVID-19, click here.