Skip to main content
 

Main menu

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Editor's Commentary
    • Archives
    • Most-Read Papers of 2022
  • Authors
    • Author Guidelines
    • Submit a Manuscript
  • Reviewers
    • Reviewer Information
    • Create Reviewer Account
    • Reviewer Guidelines: Original Research
    • Reviewer Guidelines: Reviews
    • Appreciation of Reviewers
  • CRCE
    • Through the Journal
    • JournalCasts
    • AARC University
    • PowerPoint Template
  • Open Forum
    • 2023 Call for Abstracts
    • 2022 Abstracts
    • Previous Open Forums
  • Podcast
    • English
    • Español
    • Portugûes
    • 国语
  • Videos
    • Video Abstracts
    • Author Interviews
    • Highlighted Articles
    • The Journal

User menu

  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • Log in

Search

  • Advanced search
American Association for Respiratory Care
  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • Log in
American Association for Respiratory Care

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Editor's Commentary
    • Archives
    • Most-Read Papers of 2022
  • Authors
    • Author Guidelines
    • Submit a Manuscript
  • Reviewers
    • Reviewer Information
    • Create Reviewer Account
    • Reviewer Guidelines: Original Research
    • Reviewer Guidelines: Reviews
    • Appreciation of Reviewers
  • CRCE
    • Through the Journal
    • JournalCasts
    • AARC University
    • PowerPoint Template
  • Open Forum
    • 2023 Call for Abstracts
    • 2022 Abstracts
    • Previous Open Forums
  • Podcast
    • English
    • Español
    • Portugûes
    • 国语
  • Videos
    • Video Abstracts
    • Author Interviews
    • Highlighted Articles
    • The Journal
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
Research ArticleConference Proceedings

Clinical Approach to the Weak Patient in the Intensive Care Unit

Upinder K Dhand
Respiratory Care September 2006, 51 (9) 1024-1041;
Upinder K Dhand
Department of Neurology, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • For correspondence: [email protected]
  • Article
  • References
  • Info & Metrics
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

Motor weakness in a patient in the intensive care unit (ICU) may be related to (1) pre-existing neuromuscular disorder that leads to ICU admission, (2) new-onset or previously undiagnosed neurological disorder, or (3) complications of non-neuromuscular critical illness. Neuromuscular syndromes related to ICU treatment consist of critical illness polyneuropathy, critical illness myopathy, and prolonged neuromuscular blockade, and are now recognized as a frequent cause of newly acquired weakness in ICU patients. Clinical features include quadriparesis, muscle wasting, and difficulty weaning from the ventilator. Evaluation of these patients is based on knowledge of clinical setting and predisposing factors, focused neurological examination, detailed electrophysiological investigation, serum creatine kinase level, other laboratory studies as needed, and histological examination of muscle biopsy. If a central nervous system (brain or spinal cord) lesion is suspected, neuroimaging studies are required. In addition to conventional nerve conduction and needle electromyography, phrenic nerve conduction, diaphragm electromyography, blink reflex, and (recently) the technique of direct muscle stimulation have been employed. Critical illness polyneuropathy is an axonal motor and sensory neuropathy that often follows sepsis and multiorgan failure. Risk factors for critical illness myopathy are corticosteroids and neuromuscular blocking drugs, acute respiratory illness, and organ transplant. Three subtypes (acute necrotizing myopathy, thick myosin filament loss myopathy, and type II fiber atrophy) are recognized. Major differential diagnoses of critical illness related paralysis are incidental Guillain-Barré syndrome and unmasked myasthenia gravis. Rarely, atypical presentation of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, polymyositis or other myopathies, and precipitation of porphyria or rhabdomyolysis due to drugs used in the ICU have been described. Recently a poliomyelitis-like flaccid paralysis due to West Nile virus infection was reported. A subgroup of patients with myasthenia gravis with muscle-specific tyrosine kinase antibody is noted to present as respiratory crisis. Muscle biopsy in ICU paralysis syndromes may be helpful in arriving at a specific diagnosis or to classify the type of critical illness myopathy. Nerve biopsy is only rarely indicated.

  • critical illness polyneuropathy
  • critical illness myopathy
  • electrodiagnosis
  • flaccid quadriplegia
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome
  • intensive care
  • myasthenia gravis
  • neuromuscular disorders

Footnotes

  • Correspondence: Upinder K Dhand MD, Department of Neurology, University of Missouri, 1 Hospital Drive, M178, Columbia MO 65212. E-mail: dhandu{at}health.missouri.edu.
  • Upinder K Dhand MD presented a version of this paper at the 37th RESPIRATORY CARE Journal Conference, “Neuromuscular Disease in Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine,” held March 17-19, 2006, in Ixtapa, Mexico.

  • Copyright © 2006 by Daedalus Enterprises Inc.
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Respiratory Care: 51 (9)
Respiratory Care
Vol. 51, Issue 9
1 Sep 2006
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • Cover (PDF)
  • Index by author

 

Download PDF
Article Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Email Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on American Association for Respiratory Care.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Clinical Approach to the Weak Patient in the Intensive Care Unit
(Your Name) has sent you a message from American Association for Respiratory Care
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the American Association for Respiratory Care web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Clinical Approach to the Weak Patient in the Intensive Care Unit
Upinder K Dhand
Respiratory Care Sep 2006, 51 (9) 1024-1041;

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero

Share
Clinical Approach to the Weak Patient in the Intensive Care Unit
Upinder K Dhand
Respiratory Care Sep 2006, 51 (9) 1024-1041;
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • References
  • PDF

Related Articles

Cited By...

Keywords

  • critical illness polyneuropathy
  • critical illness myopathy
  • electrodiagnosis
  • flaccid quadriplegia
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome
  • intensive care
  • myasthenia gravis
  • neuromuscular disorders

Info For

  • Subscribers
  • Institutions
  • Advertisers

About Us

  • About the Journal
  • Editorial Board

AARC

  • Membership
  • Meetings
  • Clinical Practice Guidelines

More

  • Contact Us
  • RSS
American Association for Respiratory Care

Print ISSN: 0020-1324        Online ISSN: 1943-3654

© Daedalus Enterprises, Inc.

Powered by HighWire