Skip to main content

Tele-ICU Rounds Ineffective in Shortening ICU Stay for Patients

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Oct 11, 2024.

via HealthDay

FRIDAY, Oct. 11, 2024 -- Daily multidisciplinary rounds conducted by a board-certified intensivist through telemedicine do not reduce intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS) in critically ill adult patients, according to a study published online Oct. 9 in the Journal of the American Medical Association to coincide with the annual congress of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, held from Oct. 5 to 9 in Barcelona, Spain.

Adriano J. Pereira, M.D., Ph.D., from the Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein in São Paulo, Brazil, and colleagues assessed whether an intervention involving daily multidisciplinary rounds and monthly audit and feedback meetings performed by a remote board-certified intensivist reduces ICU LOS versus usual care. The analysis included patients treated in 30 general ICUs in Brazil in which daily multidisciplinary rounds performed by board-certified intensivists were not routinely available (1,794 patients in the baseline period and 15,230 in the intervention period).

The researchers found that mean ICU LOS, adjusted for baseline assessment, did not differ significantly between the tele-critical care and usual care groups (8.1 versus 7.1 days). In sensitivity analyses and prespecified subgroups, results persisted. There were no statistically significant differences seen in any other secondary or exploratory outcomes, including ICU efficiency, in-hospital mortality, incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections, ventilator-associated events, catheter-associated urinary tract infections, ventilator-free days at 28 days, patient-days receiving oral or enteral feeding, patient-days under light sedation, and rate of patients with oxygen saturation values under that of normoxemia.

"This highlights the need but also the challenge of how to tailor telemedicine delivery models while guaranteeing a minimal adequate structure and qualifications at local sites," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text

Editorial

More Information

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Urinary Metal Levels Tied to Increased Risk for Later Heart Failure

THURSDAY, July 3, 2025 -- There are consistent associations between elevated urinary metal levels and increased heart failure risk over time across geographically diverse cohorts...

Higher Temperatures Tied to Increased Probability of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

THURSDAY, July 3, 2025 -- Higher temperatures across the globe are associated with an increased probability of having obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to a study published...

Tons of Turkey Bacon Products Recalled Due to Possible Listeria Contamination

THURSDAY, July 3, 2025 — Kraft Heinz Foods is recalling some 370,000 pounds of fully cooked turkey bacon products that may be contaminated with listeria, the U.S...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.