scholarly journals Convalescent plasma therapy and mortality in COVID-19 patients admitted to the ICU: a prospective observational study

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Hatzl ◽  
Florian Posch ◽  
Nazanin Sareban ◽  
Martin Stradner ◽  
Konrad Rosskopf ◽  
...  

Abstract Background This study aimed to quantify the potential survival benefit of convalescent plasma therapy (CVP) in critically ill patients with acute respiratory failure related to coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Methods This is a single-center prospective observational cohort study in COVID-19 patients with acute respiratory failure. Immediately after intensive care unit (ICU) admission patients were allocated to CVP treatment following pre-specified criteria to rapidly identify those patients potentially susceptible for this treatment. A propensity score adjustment [inverse probability of treatment weighted (IPTW) analysis] was implemented to account rigorously for imbalances in prognostic variables between the treatment groups. Results We included 120 patients of whom 48 received CVP. Thirty percent were female with a median age of 66 years [25th–75th percentile 54–75]. Eighty-eight percent of patients presented with severe acute respiratory failure as displayed by a median paO2/FiO2 ratio (Horowitz Index) of 92 [77–150]. All patients required any kind of ventilatory support with more than half of them (52%) receiving invasive ventilation. Thirty-day ICU overall survival (OS) was 69% in the CVP group and 54% in the non-CVP group (log-rank p = 0.049), respectively. After weighing the time-to-event data for the IPTW, the favorable association between CVP and OS became even stronger (log-rank p = 0.035). Moreover, an exploratory analysis showed an overall survival benefit of CVP therapy for patients with non-invasive ventilation (Hazard ratio 0.12 95% CI 0.03–0.57, p = 0.007) Conclusion Administration of CVP in patients with acute respiratory failure related to COVID-19 is associated with improved ICU survival rates.

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. e045659
Author(s):  
René Robert ◽  
Denis Frasca ◽  
Julie Badin ◽  
C Girault ◽  
Christophe Guitton ◽  
...  

IntroductionA palliative approach to intensive care unit (ICU) patients with acute respiratory failure and a do-not-intubate order corresponds to a poorly evaluated target for non-invasive oxygenation treatments. Survival alone should not be the only target; it also matters to avoid discomfort and to restore the patient’s quality of life. We aim to conduct a prospective multicentre observational study to analyse clinical practices and their impact on outcomes of palliative high-flow nasal oxygen therapy (HFOT) and non-invasive ventilation (NIV) in ICU patients with do-not-intubate orders.Methods and analysisThis is an investigator-initiated, multicentre prospective observational cohort study comparing the three following strategies of oxygenation: HFOT alone, NIV alternating with HFOT and NIV alternating with standard oxygen in patients admitted in the ICU for acute respiratory failure with a do-not-intubate order. The primary outcome is the hospital survival within 14 days after ICU admission in patients weaned from NIV and HFOT. The sample size was estimated at a minimum of 330 patients divided into three groups according to the oxygenation strategy applied. The analysis takes into account confounding factors by modelling a propensity score.Ethics and disseminationThe study has been approved by the ethics committee and patients will be included after informed consent. The results will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals.Trial registration numberNCT03673631


2021 ◽  
Vol 82 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
M Gabrielli ◽  
F Valletta ◽  
F Franceschi ◽  

Ventilatory support is vital for the management of severe forms of COVID-19. Non-invasive ventilation is often used in patients who do not meet criteria for intubation or when invasive ventilation is not available, especially in a pandemic when resources are limited. Despite non-invasive ventilation providing effective respiratory support for some forms of acute respiratory failure, data about its effectiveness in patients with viral-related pneumonia are inconclusive. Acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 infection causes life-threatening respiratory failure, weakening the lung parenchyma and increasing the risk of barotrauma. Pulmonary barotrauma results from positive pressure ventilation leading to elevated transalveolar pressure, and in turn to alveolar rupture and leakage of air into the extra-alveolar tissue. This article reviews the literature regarding the use of non-invasive ventilation in patients with acute respiratory failure associated with COVID-19 and other epidemic or pandemic viral infections and the related risk of barotrauma.


2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 5
Author(s):  
Maurizio Alessandro Cavalleri ◽  
Elena Barbagelata ◽  
Marco Scudeletti ◽  
Antonello Nicolini

Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has been used successfully for the management of acute respiratory failure (ARF) more often in the last two decades compared to prior decades; nevertheless, NIV can have failure rates ranging from 5% to 50%. However, there are particular groups of patients that are more likely to benefit from NIV. One of these groups is patients with hypoventilation syndrome (OHS). The aim of this review is to seek evaluation of the effectiveness of NIV in acute setting. Only a few studies have investigated NIV success or failure in OHS patients. More than 30% of them were diagnosed when hospitalized for ARF. NIV rarely failed in reversing ARF. OHS patients who exhibited early NIV failure had a high severity score and a low HCO3 level at admission; more than half of hypercapnic patients with decompensated OHS exhibited a delayed but successful response to NIV. Patients with decompensation of OHS have a better prognosis and response to NIV than other hypercapnic patients. They require more aggressive NIV settings, a longer time to reduce PaCO2 levels, and more frequently a delayed but successful response to NIV.


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