intensive care
noun
1
: the continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
Many of the sickest patients need intensive care, even to the point of being connected to a mechanical respirator.—
Lawrence K. Altman
Lawrence K. Altman2
: a designated area in a hospital providing intensive care : intensive care unit
heart patients in intensive care
… short of breath and feverish, doctors isolated him in intensive care.—Elisabeth Rosenthal
—often hyphenated when used before another nounElisabeth Rosenthalan intensive-care nurse
Examples of intensive care in a Sentence
Her condition will require intensive care.
Recent Examples on the Web
Despite delays due to his extreme prematurity, which was caused by the chronic disease bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and a long 16-month hospital stay split between the neonatal intensive care unit and the pediatric intensive care unit, John continues to make progress.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
Plaintiffs had argued that Abbott and Mead Johnson’s formulas — used to treat premature babies in neonatal intensive care units — raised the risk of developing NEC, and that the companies did not properly disclose that risk.
—Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 1 Nov. 2024
The infant was born via emergency cesarean section at 24 weeks gestation and she was immediately intubated and admitted to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
—Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 28 Oct. 2024
Among more than 300,000 people older than 15 who received severe injuries requiring urgent surgery or intensive care, helicopter transport was associated with a lower risk of dying compared with ground transport, at 17.6% versus 19.4%, according to the study.
—Jacqueline Howard, CNN, 20 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for intensive care 
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David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
Plaintiffs had argued that Abbott and Mead Johnson’s formulas — used to treat premature babies in neonatal intensive care units — raised the risk of developing NEC, and that the companies did not properly disclose that risk.
—Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 1 Nov. 2024
The infant was born via emergency cesarean section at 24 weeks gestation and she was immediately intubated and admitted to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
—Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 28 Oct. 2024
Among more than 300,000 people older than 15 who received severe injuries requiring urgent surgery or intensive care, helicopter transport was associated with a lower risk of dying compared with ground transport, at 17.6% versus 19.4%, according to the study.
—Jacqueline Howard, CNN, 20 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for intensive care
Dictionary Entries Near intensive care
Cite this Entry
“Intensive care.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intensive%20care. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
intensive care
1 of 2 noun1
: the continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
She required intensive care and survived without sequelae.—The Journal of the American Medical Association
The Journal of the American Medical Association2
: a designated area in a hospital providing intensive care : intensive care unit
heart patients in intensive care
a patient isolated in intensive care
He spent several days in intensive care before recovering from the overdose.—Jerome Groopman
Jerome Groopmanintensive care
2 of 2 adjective
variants
also intensive-care
: providing or concerned with continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
intensive care medicine
an intensive-care nurse
also
: receiving medical care in an intensive care unit
intensive care patients
compare acute care, chronic care
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