Should we extubate patients with an open abdomen?
- Tag: abdominal, Abthera, damage control resuscitation, extubation, hypotension, intubation, Open Abdomen, Temporary Abdominal Closure, trauma
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I am not sure where I picked it up, but I have always considered an open abdomen as a contraindication to extubation. Taveras et al. has not only challenged my belief that an open abdomen is a contraindication to extubation, but has done the favor of educating me on the vernacular surrounding abdominal closure. Turns out, it is possible to extubate a patient with an open abdomen. Embarrassingly, I was a little off on what the definition of a temporary abdominal closure was. If you feel so inclined, this months editorial is a quick 5 minute read and may cause you to reconsider your practice.
This months editorial comes from yours truly, Joshua Sappenfield. I hail from gator country where we see about 3600 trauma admissions. I did a Trauma Anesthesiology Fellowship at R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center. I love to talk about Tranexamic Acid and coagulation.