Potential interaction between sepsis and acute respiratory distress syndrome and effect on the 6-month clinical outcomes: A preliminary secondary analysis of a prospective observational study
Abstract Background The effect of the interaction between sepsis and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) on the clinical outcomes is unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of the potential interaction between the two conditions on mortality and the occurrence of post-intensive care syndrome (PICS). Methods This secondary analysis of a prospective multicenter observational study included patients who were expected to receive mechanical ventilation for more than 48 h. Patients were stratified based on the incidence of sepsis and further subdivided according to the presence of ARDS. The primary endpoints for patients whose follow-up information was available included mortality (n=162) and the occurrence of PICS (n=96) at six months. The diagnosis of PICS was based on any of the following criteria: (1) decrease ≥ 10 points in the physical component score of the 36-item Short Form (SF36) questionnaire; (2) decrease ≥ 10 points in the mental component score of the SF-36; or (3) decline in the Short Memory Questionnaire (SMQ) score and SMQ score < 40 at six months after ICU admission. We conducted multivariate logistic regression analyses to assess the effect of the potential interaction between ARDS and sepsis on the 6-month clinical outcomes. Result The mortality in the ARDS sub-group was higher than that in the non-ARDS subgroup [47% (7/15) versus 21% (18/85)] in the non-sepsis group. However, the mortality in the ARDS and non-ARDS subgroups was similar in the sepsis group. Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed that ARDS was significantly associated with mortality in the non-sepsis group (adjusted OR: 5.25; 95% CI: 1.45–19.09; p = 0.012), but not in the sepsis group (P-value for the interaction=0.087). Multiple logistic regression analyses showed ARDS was not associated with PICS occurrence in the non-sepsis and sepsis groups (P-value for the interaction=0.039). Conclusions Our findings suggested that the effect of ARDS on the 6-month outcomes depended on the presence or absence of sepsis. The findings of this hypothesis-generating study should be validated by future studies.