Neurosurgical intensive medicine care

Treatment

The neurosurgical-anaesthesiological intensive care unit 91 at UKR is a highly specialised intensive care unit with 10 beds. Intensive medical treatment of all neurosurgical conditions is possible here.

• On the one hand, we care for patients who have undergone brain tumour surgery or other neurosurgical operations on the brain or spinal cord and who, for example, require close monitoring due to the patient's previous illnesses.
• On the other hand, we treat patients with cerebral haemorrhage or inflammatory diseases of the nervous system, patients with isolated craniocerebral injuries or polytrauma patients, as well as "strokes" that require surgical relief.

Equipment

The ward has 10 fully-equipped ventilation stations, which provide both invasive and various non-invasive ventilation options. We have state-of-the-art equipment and all standard organ replacement procedures are available and can be carried out on the ward. These include:

• Renal replacement procedures such as dialysis
• Lung replacement, such as ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation = a type of heart-lung machine)
• Complete replacement of circulatory function by VA ECMO, plasmapheresis, etc.

This equipment and the close interdisciplinary cooperation with the various specialist departments of UKR also enable the treatment of severely pre-ill neurosurgical patients or patients with multifactorial diseases of the central nervous system.

Specialisation

A particular specialisation is the care of patients following:

• Aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (brain bleeding between certain layers of the meninges).
• Arteriovenous malformations (so-called angiomas = benign growths of blood or lymph vessels)
• Traumatic brain injury / polytrauma

Using modern diagnostic and monitoring techniques (e.g. neuromonitoring, continuous EEG monitoring), these patients can be optimally treated with individualised therapy. This significantly improves the chances that the nervous system/brain will function better after treatment.

Individualised continuous intraarterial vasospasm therapy with nimodipine has been developed specifically for patients suffering from cerebral vasospasm (vasospasm = a spasm or constriction of the blood vessels) following a subarachnoid haemorrhage. This has been used for years with very good results for patients and the results have been published in scientific journals. They are also cited in the current American Heart Association guidelines for the treatment of subarachnoid haemorrhage.

Highest quality

• The Neurosurgical-Anaesthesiological Intensive Care Unit at UKR is one of the intensive care units listed by the German Society for Neurointensive and Emergency Medicine (DGNI), which enables the exchange of assistants/specialists for further training or the acquisition of an additional qualification in intensive care medicine via a DGNI scholarship.
• All senior physicians working on the ward also have additional qualifications in intensive care medicine to ensure that everything runs smoothly at the highest level. Residents receive the appropriate theoretical and practical training,
• Disease-specific and treatment-specific standards (SOPs) are in place and are constantly updated in collaboration between neurosurgery and anaesthesia.
• A very high percentage of the nursing staff have specialised training in intensive care medicine to provide professional, highly qualified intensive care therapy at every level.

• Prof. Dr. Nils Ole Schmidt, Clinic Director
• Dr. Sylvia Bele
• PD Dr. Elisabeth Bründl