Drug Safety and Outcomes in Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Pharmaceutical Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 1077

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Helios Universitätsklinikum Wuppertal, Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonology and Infectious Diseases, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten, Germany
Interests: respiratory medicine; pulmonology; intensive care medicine; drug safety; pharmacotherapy; clinical outcomes research; critical illness; evidence-based medicine
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pharmacological therapies remain a cornerstone in the prevention, diagnosis, and management of respiratory diseases and in the treatment of critically ill patients. In clinical practice, physicians are often faced with the challenge of balancing therapeutic efficacy against the potential risk of adverse drug reactions, drug–drug interactions, and treatment-related complications. In respiratory and intensive care medicine, these challenges are amplified by the complexity of disease mechanisms, the heterogeneity of patient populations, and the frequent use of multiple concomitant medications.

The primary aim of this Special Issue is to provide a comprehensive overview of current evidence and emerging insights into drug safety and clinical outcomes in respiratory and critical care settings. We seek to highlight advances in pharmacological strategies, to identify risk factors associated with poor drug tolerance or therapeutic failure, and to explore innovative approaches to improve patient safety and optimize treatment results. Contributions that examine the mechanisms of drug toxicity, novel biomarkers for monitoring therapy, and strategies to prevent adverse events will be of particular interest. 

We welcome original research articles, clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and state-of-the-art reviews. Submissions may address a broad range of topics, including but not limited to safety and effectiveness of established pharmacological interventions in respiratory diseases such as asthma, COPD, pneumonia, pulmonary hypertension, or interstitial lung diseases; pharmacotherapy in acute respiratory failure, sepsis, and multi-organ dysfunction; the impact of polypharmacy in intensive care settings; and translational research that bridges basic pharmacological science with clinical application. Studies involving real-world data, multicenter collaborations, and patient-centered outcome measures are strongly encouraged.

By bringing together high-quality contributions from both clinical and translational research, this Special Issue aims to advance knowledge in the field, foster interdisciplinary exchange, and provide clinicians and researchers with a solid foundation for evidence-based decision-making. Ultimately, our goal is to support safer and more effective drug use in respiratory and critical care medicine, thereby improving both short- and long-term outcomes for patients worldwide.

Dr. Josef Yayan
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • drug safety
  • adverse drug reactions
  • pharmacovigilance
  • critical care medicine
  • respiratory diseases
  • clinical outcomes
  • intensive care pharmacotherapy
  • drug–drug interactions

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

10 pages, 1016 KB  
Article
Association Between Cumulative Sedative Exposure and ICU Length of Stay Without a Significant Association with Mortality
by Josef Yayan
Life 2026, 16(5), 833; https://doi.org/10.3390/life16050833 (registering DOI) - 19 May 2026
Viewed by 499
Abstract
Background: Sedative medications are widely used in intensive care units (ICUs) to facilitate patient management; however, their association with clinical outcomes remains incompletely understood. This study aimed to evaluate the association of cumulative sedative exposure with ICU length of stay (LOS) in a [...] Read more.
Background: Sedative medications are widely used in intensive care units (ICUs) to facilitate patient management; however, their association with clinical outcomes remains incompletely understood. This study aimed to evaluate the association of cumulative sedative exposure with ICU length of stay (LOS) in a large cohort of critically ill adult patients. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted using the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV) database. Adult ICU patients (≥18 years) with documented sedative administration were included. Total sedative exposure was quantified as the cumulative dose administered during the ICU stay. The primary outcome was ICU LOS, while the secondary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Patients were stratified into quartiles according to cumulative sedative dose. Multivariable regression analysis was performed to assess the association between total sedative exposure and ICU LOS. Results: A total of 2953 ICU stays were analyzed. Higher cumulative sedative exposure was associated with significantly prolonged ICU LOS. Mean ICU LOS increased from 68.75 h in the lowest quartile to 250.65 h in the highest quartile (p < 0.001). A weak positive correlation was observed between log-transformed total sedative dose and ICU LOS (r = 0.33, p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis, cumulative sedative exposure remained significantly associated with ICU LOS (β = 15.79, 95% CI 14.17–17.41, p < 0.001). No consistent association was identified between sedative exposure and in-hospital mortality. Conclusions: Higher cumulative sedative exposure was associated with longer ICU LOS but not with increased in-hospital mortality. These findings support the importance of carefully tailored sedation strategies in critically ill patients. However, due to the retrospective observational design, causality cannot be inferred, and residual confounding related to illness severity and treatment duration may remain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Drug Safety and Outcomes in Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine)
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