scholarly journals Tracheostomy Timing and Outcome in Severe COVID-19: The WeanTrach Multicenter Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 2651
Author(s):  
Denise Battaglini ◽  
Francesco Missale ◽  
Irene Schiavetti ◽  
Marta Filauro ◽  
Francesca Iannuzzi ◽  
...  

Background: Tracheostomy can be performed safely in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, little is known about the optimal timing, effects on outcome, and complications. Methods: A multicenter, retrospective, observational study. This study included 153 tracheostomized COVID-19 patients from 11 intensive care units (ICUs). The primary endpoint was the median time to tracheostomy in critically ill COVID-19 patients. Secondary endpoints were survival rate, length of ICU stay, and post-tracheostomy complications, stratified by tracheostomy timing (early versus late) and technique (surgical versus percutaneous). Results: The median time to tracheostomy was 15 (1–64) days. There was no significant difference in survival between critically ill COVID-19 patients who received tracheostomy before versus after day 15, nor between surgical and percutaneous techniques. ICU length of stay was shorter with early compared to late tracheostomy (p < 0.001) and percutaneous compared to surgical tracheostomy (p = 0.050). The rate of lower respiratory tract infections was higher with surgical versus percutaneous technique (p = 0.007). Conclusions: Among critically ill patients with COVID-19, neither early nor percutaneous tracheostomy improved outcomes, but did shorten ICU stay. Infectious complications were less frequent with percutaneous than surgical tracheostomy.

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S652-S652
Author(s):  
Alexandre Malek ◽  
Johny Fares ◽  
Melissa Khalil ◽  
Ray Y Hachem ◽  
Anne-Marie Chaftari ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) therapy has ushered cancer treatment into a potentially curative era. However, infectious complications remain largely unknown and the few studies that described infectious complications associated with ICI had no comparative control groups. We assessed the rate of infections in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with ICI plus conventional chemotherapy (CC) vs. CC alone. Methods We performed a comparative single-center retrospective cohort study of patients with NSCLC who received de novo treatment with either Pembrolizumab or Nivolumab, and/or Ipilimumab combined with CC including Pemetrexed and Carboplatin vs. patients treated with CC alone between August 2016 and January 2019. We excluded all patients who were switched from CC to ICI or vice-versa. We evaluated patients’ characteristics, treatment modality, immune-related adverse events (irAEs), and outcome. Infections were defined by clinical signs and symptoms, microbiologic documentation, and/or imaging studies. Results A group of 126 patients who received ICI concurrently with CC were compared with 126 patients who received CC alone (control group). Patients in the ICI group were more likely to have stage IV NSCLC compared with the control group (P < 0.0001). Pembrolizumab was most commonly used as a single ICI agent in 107 patients (85%), followed by Ipilimumab and Nivolumab as dual therapy (9%). Confirmed infections were identified in 20 (16%) patients in the ICI group and 18 (14%) in the control group (P = 0.7). The control group had a higher rate of multiple infections at different times compared with the ICI group (P = 0.014). However, there was no significant difference in the types of infections (bacterial, fungal or viral) that occurred between the two groups. The irAEs were reported in 14 (11%) patients, 13 of them received corticosteroids with a median duration of 32 days (range, 15–64 days). Out of these patients, three (21%) developed confirmed infections of which two were viral upper respiratory tract infections and one was a bacterial urinary tract infection. Conclusion Patients with NSCLC treated with the combination of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors plus Conventional Chemotherapy have comparable risk of developing infections compared with those on Conventional Chemotherapy alone. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


2013 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 654-663 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew E. Falagas ◽  
Panagiota Lourida ◽  
Panagiotis Poulikakos ◽  
Petros I. Rafailidis ◽  
Giannoula S. Tansarli

ABSTRACTWe sought to evaluate the effectiveness of the antibiotic treatment administered for infections caused by carbapenemase-producingEnterobacteriaceae. The PubMed and Scopus databases were systematically searched. Articles reporting the clinical outcomes of patients infected with carbapenemase-producingEnterobacteriaceaeaccording to the antibiotic treatment administered were eligible. Twenty nonrandomized studies comprising 692 patients who received definitive treatment were included. Almost all studies reported onKlebsiellaspp. In 8 studies, the majority of infections were bacteremia, while pneumonia and urinary tract infections were the most common infections in 12 studies. In 10 studies, the majority of patients were critically ill. There are methodological issues, including clinical heterogeneity, that preclude the synthesis of the available evidence using statistical analyses, including meta-analysis. From the descriptive point of view, among patients who received combination treatment, mortality was up to 50% for the tigecycline-gentamicin combination, up to 64% for tigecycline-colistin, and up to 67% for carbapenem-colistin. Among the monotherapy-treated patients, mortality was up to 57% for colistin and up to 80% for tigecycline. Certain regimens were administered to a small number of patients in certain studies. Three studies reporting on 194 critically ill patients with bacteremia showed individually significantly lower mortality in the combination arm than in the monotherapy arm. In the other studies, no significant difference in mortality was recorded between the compared groups. Combination antibiotic treatment may be considered the optimal option for severely ill patients with severe infections. However, well-designed randomized studies of specific patient populations are needed to further clarify this issue.


2000 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 457-466 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. K. Heyland

While many studies have reported that providing parenteral nutrition (PN) can change nutritional outcomes, there are limited data that demonstrate that PN influences clinically-important end points in critically-ill patients. The purpose of the present paper is to systematically review and critically appraise the literature to examine the relationship between PN and morbidity and mortality in the critically-ill patient. Studies comparing enteral nutrition (EN) with PN and studies comparing PN with no PN were reviewed. The results suggest that EN is associated with reduced infectious complications in some critically-ill subgroups. PN, on the other hand, is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in critically-ill patients. When nutritional support is indicated, EN should be used preferentially over PN. Further studies are needed to define the optimal timing and composition of PN in patients not tolerating sufficient EN. Strategies to optimize EN delivery and minimize PN utilization in critically-ill patients are indicated.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yumiko Oka ◽  
Takao Kodera ◽  
Miki Takeshita ◽  
Yuko Shirota ◽  
Tomoki Takeda ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Objectives To examine how the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has changed infectious complications in outpatients with autoimmune diseases. Methods We performed a retrospective, record-linked cohort study and questionnaire about lifestyle changes in patients who visited our department in 2019 and 2020. Results We surveyed 1316 outpatients in 2019 and 1284 in 2020. The most common underlying diseases were rheumatoid arthritis (842 vs. 814) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (126 vs. 127). No significant difference in median age (66 vs. 67 years), respiratory comorbidities (30.4% vs. 32.0%), or corticosteroid use (42.2% vs. 44.3%) was found between the years. Immunomodulating agents were used more in 2020 (33.1% vs. 39.7%, p &lt; .001). Total number of infections (28.0/100 vs. 19.4/100 person-years), pneumonia (3.6 vs. 1.6), influenza (2.1 vs. 0.1), and nonviral dermatological infections (3.8 vs. 2.1) were significantly lower in 2020. No significant difference was found for herpes zoster (2.2 vs. 1.8), urinary tract infections (3.3 vs. 3.8), or gastrointestinal infections (2.9 vs. 3.0). According to the questionnaire, 75% of the respondents became more conscious about wearing masks and 81% began to use hand sanitizer during the pandemic. Conclusion Under the COVID-19 pandemic, some infectious complications have decreased in outpatients with autoimmune diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 160-169
Author(s):  
Suresh Kumar Sharma ◽  
Ritu Rani ◽  
Kalpana Thakur

Abstract Objectives: This systematic review aims to evaluate and summarise the findings of all relevant studies which identified the effect of early vs delayed parenteral nutrition (PN), early PN vs early supplemental PN and early PN vs standard care for critically ill adults. Methods: The literature search was undertaken using PubMed, Embase, Medline, Clinical Key, and Ovid discovery databases. The reference lists of studies published from 2000 till June 2020 were hand searched. Result: On screening 2088 articles, a total of five RCTs with 6,277 patients were included in this review. Only one clinical trial compared early PN and late PN; the results reported significantly shorter periods in intensive care unit (ICU) stay (p=0.02) and less ICU related infections (p=0.008) in the late PN group compared to the Early PN group. Two trials compared total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and enteral nutrition (EN) +TPN groups. Both found a significantly longer hospital stay duration (p<0.05 and p<0.01) with a higher mortality rate in the TPN group compared to the EN+TPN group. A statistically significant improvement was observed in patients’ quality of life receiving early PN compared to standard care (p=0.01). In contrast, no significant difference was found in the supplemental PN vs the standard care group. Conclusion: The supplemental PN patients had shorter ICU stay and lower mortality rates than TPN. However, these findings should be interpreted carefully as included studies have different initiation timing of nutritional support, and the patients’ diagnosis varied. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO: CRD42020183175


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 3564
Author(s):  
Dhan Bahadur Shrestha ◽  
Pravash Budhathoki ◽  
Yub Raj Sedhai ◽  
Sujit Kumar Mandal ◽  
Shreeja Shikhrakar ◽  
...  

Background: Vitamin C is a water-soluble antioxidant vitamin. Oxidative stress and its markers, along with inflammatory markers, are high during critical illness. Due to conflicting results of the published literature regarding the efficacy of vitamin C in critically ill patients, and especially the concerns for nephrotoxicity raised by some case reports, this meta-analysis was carried out to appraise the evidence and affirmation regarding the role of vitamin C in critically ill patients. Methods: We searched the database thoroughly to collect relevant studies that assessed intravenous vitamin C use in critically ill patients published until 25 February 2021. We included randomized controlled trials and observational studies with 20 or more critically ill patients who have received intravenous ascorbic acid (vitamin C). After screening 18,312 studies from different databases, 53 were included in our narrative synthesis, and 48 were included in the meta-analysis. We used the Covidence software for screening of the retrieved literature. Review Manager (RevMan) 5.4 was used for the pooling of data and Odds Ratios (OR) and Mean difference (MD) as measures of effects with a 95% confidence interval to assess for explanatory variables. Results: Pooling data from 33 studies for overall hospital mortality outcomes using a random-effect model showed a 19% reduction in odds of mortality among the vitamin C group (OR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.66–0.98). Length of hospital stay (LOS), mortality at 28/30 days, ICU mortality, new-onset AKI and Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT) for AKI did not differ significantly across the two groups. Analysis of data from 30 studies reporting ICU stay disclosed 0.76 fewer ICU days in the vitamin C group than the placebo/standard of care (SOC) group (95% CI, −1.34 to −0.19). This significance for shortening ICU stay persisted even when considering RCTs only in the analysis (MD, −0.70; 95% CI, −1.39 to −0.02). Conclusion: Treatment of critically ill patients with intravenous vitamin C was relatively safe with no significant difference in adverse renal events and decreased in-hospital mortality. The use of vitamin C showed a significant reduction in the length of ICU stays in critically ill patients.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 26-38
Author(s):  
Abdulghani Mohamed Alsamarai ◽  
Shler Ali Khorshed

Background: Urinary tract infection is common with health impact in women and characterised by failure to treatment and recurrent episodes. Aim: This study was conducted to determine the risk factors for the development of urinary tract infection in diabetic and pregnant women in comparison to student female. Materials and methods: A prospective cross-sectional study conducted during the period from 1st of June 2015 to the end of January 2016. The population included in the study are 563 women, of them 425 were outpatients, and 138 were inpatients. Their age range between 18 and 80 years, with a mean age of 33.59±15.29 years. Urine samples collected and cultured on blood agar and MacConkey agar by spread plate technique. Bacterial colonies with different morphology were selected, purified and identified according to their biochemical characteristics using conventional standard methods. Results: In diabetic women, there were no significant difference in mean age and BMI values between culture positive and culture negative groups. However, pus cell mean scale was significantly higher [P=0.000] in women with urinary tract infection [1.76±1.25] than in those with negative culture [0.69±1.00]. In pregnant women, BMI mean value was significantly [P=0.013] lower in pregnant women with UTI [26.14] as compared to those without infection [26.99]. Pus cell scale mean value was significantly [P=0.000] higher in pregnant women with UTI [1.55] than women with negative UTI [0.85]. While there was no significant difference in mean age between UTI positive and negative pregnant women. In female student, there was a significant difference between UTI infected and non-infected in mean age [P=0.041] and pus cell scale [P=0.000]. However, BMI was not significantly different between infected and non-infected female student. Other risk factors association are variables in the 3 groups when analysed using X2, while AUC and OR show different trends of association between risk factors and UTI. Conclusion: BMI, pus cell scale, child number, delivery method, operation history and hospital setting were significantly associated with culture positivity in the 3 studied groups as determined by AUC. While OR confirmed association with pus sale scale in the 3 groups.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (05) ◽  
pp. 4563
Author(s):  
Tariq A. Zafar

Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) test indicates the blood glucose levels for the previous two to three months. Using HbA1c test may overcome many of the practical issues and prevent infections such as urinary tract infections (UTIs). The study aimed to evaluate the impact of glycemic control using HbA1c test to understand patient characteristics and UTIs prevalence. Glycemic control was evaluated by measuring HbA1c for a total of 208 diabetes patients who were regularly attending diabetes center in Al-Noor specialist hospital in Makkah.  The results showed that good and moderate glycemic controlled patients were 14.9% and 16.9% respectively while the poor glycemic patients were 68.3%. Among the good improved glycemic control, 83.9% were females, 48.4% were from age group (15-44y). Among the moderately improved glycemic control, 68.4% were females, 54.3% were from age group (45-64 y) with no significant difference. The total number of the patients with positive UTIs was 55 (26.4%) while the total number of patients with negative was UTIs 153 (73.6%). Among the positive UTIs, 76.3% were with poor glycemic control while only 12.3% and 11% were moderate and good improved glycemic control respectively. Among the negative UTIs, 65.3% were with poor glycemic control while only 19% and 15.7% were with moderate and good improved glycemic control respectively.  Prevalence of UTIs among diabetic patients was not significant (p > 0.05). It was concluded that HbA1c was useful monitoring tool for diabetes mellitus and may lead to improved outcomes. Using a HbA1c test may overcome many of the practical issues that affect the blood glucose tests.


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guohong Zhu ◽  
Dan Xu ◽  
Yuanyuan Zhang ◽  
Tianlin Wang ◽  
Lingyan Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Viruses are the main infectious agents of acute respiratory infections in children. We aim to describe the epidemiological characteristics of viral pathogens of acute respiratory tract infections in outpatient children. Methods From April 2018 to March 2019, the results of viral detection using oral pharyngeal swabs from 103,210 children with acute respiratory tract infection in the outpatient department of the Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, were retrospectively analyzed. Viral antigens, including adenovirus (ADV), influenza A (FLUA), influenza B (FLUB) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), were detected by the colloidal gold method. Results At least one virus was detected in 38,355 cases; the positivity rate was 37.2%. A total of 1910 cases of mixed infection with two or more viruses were detected, and the positivity rate of multiple infection was 1.9%. The ADV positivity rate was highest in the 3–6-year-old group (18.7%), the FLUA positivity rate was highest in the > 6-year-old group (21.6%), the FLUB positivity rate was highest in the > 6-year-old group (6.6%), and the RSV positivity rate was highest in the < 1-year-old group (10.6%). There was a significant difference in the positivity rate of viral infection among different age groups (χ2 = 1280.7, P < 0.001). The rate of positive viral infection was highest in winter (47.1%). The ADV infection rate was highest in spring (18.2%). The rates of FLUA and FLUB positivity were highest in winter (28.8% and 3.6%, respectively). The rate of RSV positivity was highest in autumn (17.4%). The rate of positive viral infection in different seasons was significantly different (χ2 = 6459.1, P < 0.001). Conclusions Viral infection rates in children differ for different ages and seasons. The positivity rate of ADV is highest in the preschool period and that of RSV is highest in infants; that of FLU increases with age. The total positive rate of viral infection in different seasons is highest in winter, as is the rate of FLU positivity.


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