Glucose Control in the ICU

Randomized, controlled trials aiming for near-normal glycemic targets (80 to 110 mg per deciliter [4.4 to 6.1 mmol per liter]) in critically ill patients have shown conflicting data regarding the benefits of intensive glycemic control (Table 1). In 2001, Van den Berghe et al. reported a dramatic 42% lower mortality among patients in the surgical intensive care unit (ICU) in whom the blood glucose level had been adjusted to 80 to 110 mg per deciliter than among those who had received conventional treatment that was initiated when glucose levels exceeded 215 mg per deciliter (11.9 mmol per liter), with a . . .