Time in ICU and post‑intensive care syndrome: how long is long enough?

Dylan Flaws, John F. Fraser, Kevin Laupland, Jayshree Lavana, Sue Patterson, Alexis Tabah, Oystein Tronstad, and Mahesh Ramanan. Critical Care (2024) https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-024-04812-7

Background Our understanding of post-ICU recovery is influenced by which patients are selected to study and treat. Many studies currently list an ICU length of stay of at least 24, 48, or 72 h as an inclusion criterion. This may be driven by established evidence that prolonged time in an ICU bed and prolonged ventilation can complicate post-ICU rehabilitation. However, recovery after short ICU stays still needs to be explored.

Conclusion Many patients with an ICU length of stay < 72 h are reporting post-ICU impairment 6 months after leaving ICU. This is a population often excluded from studies and interventions. Future research should further explore post-ICU impairment among shorter stays.

CCRG Mental Health Research Fellow A/Prof Dylan Flaws said “We’ve known for a while that spending a long time in ICU can lead to a complicated recovery. This paper shows that even people spending a short time in ICU can have a difficult time after returning home. Many are experiencing physical, cognitive and psychological impairments 6 months after leaving ICU even if they were only there for a short time, and even if they weren’t ventilated.”