Table 1.

Overview of some critical care organ support and monitoring options

Organ system	Common on ICU	Available in specialized units
Respiratory	High flow oxygen/high flow nasal cannula therapy CPAP (nasal, hood, mask) Non-invasive ventilation Invasive ventilation (various techniques including recruitment manoeuvres) Percutaneous tracheostomy Bronchoscopy, broncho-alveolar lavage Prone ventilation	Extra-corporeal CO2 removal (ECCO2R) Extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) Oscillatory ventilation
Cardiovascular	IV fluids management Vasopressors and inotropes Arterial and central venous catheters Cardiac output monitoring: Pulse contour analysis (LiDCO, PiCCO and others), oesophageal doppler, pulmonary artery flotation catheter Cardiac pacing Echocardiography (trans-thoracic and trans-oesophageal)	Intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation pump ECMO Ventricular assist devices
Renal	Renal replacement therapy including continuous veno-venous haemo (dia-)filtration or intermittent haemodialysis
CNS	Neurological observations Raw EEG (or EEG- derived) monitoring Intracranial pressure monitoring Therapeutic cooling/temperature control	Jugular venous oximetry Transcranial doppler Cerebral microdialysis Cerebral tissue oxygenation monitoring
Gastrointestinal	Enteral and parenteral nutrition, immune-enhancing nutrition	Molecular adsorption recirculating system (MARS) in liver failure
	Intra-abdominal pressure monitoring
Other	Epidural and intrathecal analgesia
	Plasma exchange
	Neuromuscular monitoring