Book excerpt: This work covers the fundamentals of critical care, topics related to medical critical care, and the essentials of surgical intensive care. Early chapters cover physiology and pathophysiology of critical illness, and later chapters cover pathophysiology using an organ or disease specific approach. This second edition includes an update on new treatment strategies for acute respiratory distress syndrome, and recommendations on critical care supportive measures, including nutrition, prevention of bleeding, and prevention of deep venous thrombosis.